Martel's True Will
by Thaeonblade
Summary: On the night before the Chosen's Journey begins, one of the four seraphim decides to pay a visit to Dirk's adopted son. What becomes of this visit changes everything. Semi-Dark/Chaotic Good LloydxSlightly/Reasonably OCC Colette
1. Chapter 1

**Copyright: I own nothing.**

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><p>"Dad?" An intruder yawned as a young man entered his home, worried that something had happened to his parent, "Dad!"<p>

"Don't worry, your father sleeps." The intruder had nothing to fear, he had come to speak to this very child.

"And just who the hell are you!" The boy demanded as he drew out his twin swords.

"Nobody important." The intruder walked casually through the living room, he held his cape over the front of his body. He wasn't cold, but he did note that some people were further intimidated by him when he did so and therefore, more prone to listening. "But if you require a name Lloyd Irving, then you can call me Yuan."

"Yuan?" The boy didn't even notice that Yuan had just said his name. It was true, the boy was slow, "What do you want?"

"I'm merely a nameless renegade here with an important message." Yuan brushed hair out of his face while the boy kept his swords held up in an awkward guard, "You are a fool."

"What?" The boy seemed shocked, stunned at what Yuan had told him, "You broke into my home and knocked out my dad to tell me that!" Lloyd slashed out to send a wave of telekinetic mana towards Yuan who blocked it with his double-bladed sword and spun in a rapid dance as the boy charged in and attacked.

Yuan made short work of the boy's flimpsy guard and broke through one of his swords before forcing the boy back into a wall with unseen mana. Grumbling, the boy stood back up as Yuan sheathed his weapon, uninterested in a fight.

"Swift...reckless...bold..." Yuan stated as Lloyd paid little attention to his broken sword and still remained ready to fight, "Just like your father."

"You knew my father?"

"It doesn't matter, I am not here about him." Though he would have if he was going with the original plan, "I'm here to tell you about your friend, the Chosen."

"Colette..." The boy's narrowed as he held up his remaining sword and the broken blade of the other, "Oh no! If you're here to hurt her-"

"Me? Hurt the Chosen?" Yuan chuckled as he sat back in a chair behind him, "What nonsense you speak child...I am here to ensure that you learn a simple truth."

"And why should I believe anything that you say to me?"

"I never said that you had to believe me." Yuan clarified while the boy just growled, "Nor did I say that I would tell you."

"I'll give you a choice." Yuan said as he pulled out two items with each of his hands and held them out to the boy, "These swords? They're plain now but give me a moment..." Yuan focused and didn't blink as a burst of energy shot out along the blades.

"Mana..."

"The choice is presented by whichever sword you take."

"You...You're giving me the swords?"

"Only the one that you choose." Yuan answered as the boy cautiously regarded the weapons in his hands, "If you take the sword surrounded in white fire, you will experience a momentary nausia before you lose consciousness. Then you will wake up whenever you originally planed to with no memory of ever meeting me. Afterwards, you will follow your precious chosen in ignorance of the cycle you propel on."

"If you take the sword surrounded in blue fire." Yuan continued, surpressing a smirk because he now had the boy exactly where he wanted him, "You'll experience pain...physically and mentally. You will learn a truth that has been pulled over your eyes and it will shock you. But what you do with what this sword does, depends completely on you."

"That simple?" As Yuan expected, the boy was not very easy to put at ease. While entranced by the power emitting from the two weapons, Lloyd did not trust the man holding them.

Smart boy.

"Remember." Yuan stared straight into the child's eyes, there was something waking up. It needed only something to jump upon and devour, "This is neither salvation nor damnation, all I offer...is the truth."

The truth.

Something flared in the boy's eyes before it cooled, distorting the boy's trust. It told Lloyd that his distrust of the intruder was irrelevant compared to the truth that he promised.

Yuan had no need to guess, Lloyd's gaze fell upon the cold blue flame. Yuan smirked, this boy had been withheld from the truth and somehow he knew it. He was no presented with a chance, a chance to learn of his friend's burden.

The boy slowly dropped his broken sword, shifted his remaining one to the left hand and reached out with his right. His hand hesitated to grip the enflamed handle, of course it was. The handle was on fire, any sane person would avoid fire.

But the boy never once took his gaze from that handle, he had already made his choice.

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><p>"Kratos?"<p>

"It's nothing..." Kratos Aurion breathed, he could have sworn that he had felt something...no, it wasn't possible. "Are you sure that this is wise?"

"What?" The restless blond girl asked while Kratos crossed his arms over his chest.

"Lying to Lloyd about when you would leave." Kratos said to the Chosen as he leaned against the wall, "It is none of my business, but why not just tell him the truth."

"Kratos...I..."

"It is awfully cruel to mislead him-"

"It would be more so to take him with us!" The girl burst out while Kratos nodded in agreement, "He doesn't need to know...he doesn't need to see..."

"See that you will die?"

"Yes..." The girl held her legs up to her chest as tears flowed out of her eyes, "I don't want him to see me...see me die..."

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><p>"Lloyd..." The boy was now curled into a fetal position, desperately clutching his shoulders while his right hand was glued around the sword he had chosen, "What did you learn?"<p>

"I heard her...I heard it from her own mouth..." The boy muttered amidst mad drooling and his own tears, "She's going to die..."

"Yes." Yuan walked in a circle around Lloyd, watching his sobbing, shaking form as he sensed something rise inside of the human, "This path she is about to embark on...will lead to her death."

"But why?" Lloyd now sounded much more angry than he did sad. This was a positive change in Yuan's opinion, "It's just going to..."

"Shift back in a few generations?" The boy stopped shaking as Yuan smirked, "My boy...what you need to understand is that everything you know...is wrong."

"Cruxis...the goddess Martel...The Journey of-" Lloyd didn't seem able to say it, the word apparently infuriated him to where he shot to his feet, "It's all a joke? It's all a joke!"

"Yes, a big cosmic scam designed to play with lives." Yuan confirmed as the boy stayed with his arms curled at his side, "And your friend, is going to be this game's latest victim."

"Colette..." Lloyd's eyes were shut tight with frustration and rage, as well as sadness that only fueled the earlier emotions, "She lied to me...she doesn't want me to go..."

"No..." Yuan slipped around to Lloyd's back and whispered gently into his ear, "She cares too much for you. She believes it better for you to live happily knowing that she will not embark on this quest."

"A quest that will first take away her right to rest." Yuan felt the beast in this boy's heart stir, he had felt it once and still does even years after it had awoke, "Then, it will take her ability to eat and be filled." Tears still flowing, the boy's teeth began to grit against each other.

"She will then lose her sense of touch...to feel someone hold her hand." Lloyd's breathing quickened, Yuan could feel the air change around this child, "Her voice will be silenced by the cruelty of these false heavens."

"Finally, she will be led to the Alter of Salvation where her soul will-"

"No..." The exsphere started to glow as the boy clutched his fists, the beast was waking up.

"And what is left will be prepared for a possible match for the soul of-"

"NOOOO!" Yuan backed up when a mana flowed out from Lloyd and shook everything in his small house. The boy then cried fervently and pathetically as he fell to his knees. Yuan had been in the boy's shoes, he knew what it was like to have the world crash down on him.

"I know how you feel..." Yuan knelt down to the sobbing child and place an arm around the boy's shoulder, "I loved someone once...only to have the world take her away. For others to spit on her dream and her final wishes, pervert them into something...ugly."

"But you can save Colette." The boy slowly turned to face Yuan, "And find a satisfactory way to save Sylvar-"

"The hell with Sylvarant!" The boy spat on the ground as he stood up, "How could...How could they do this? How many past chosens have given their lives in vain?"

"Colette will be the 7th officially." Yuan answered, "But take into account the thousands of years that have passed-"

"Enough!" Yuan could already see the change happening, the darkening of his eyes, "I want to save Colette...if I can't save Sylvarant in the meantime...let it burn..."

"You would allow Sylvarant to die just for one girl?"

"She's not just a girl!" The boy shouted in fury, but stopped himself and slapped his tearful face, "She's Colette! She's kind, gentle, brave and way smarter than I'll ever be...and this world...it won't stop at one..."

"Say no more." Yuan stated as he gave the boy a cloth to wipe his face. "But I am afraid that without the right power, your words are just that...words."

"How do I become stronger?"

"You don't need to." Yuan stated as the boy looked on for a further explanation, "The power is already here."

"Mom's exsphere?"

"Exactly." Yuan answered, pointing the boy's attention to the exsphere embedded in his hand, "But unlike other's, this exsphere is very unique and already holds enough power to rival my own."

"But, you don't know how to access it, do you?" Yuan didn't need an answer, of course the boy didn't, "Not to the extent that you will need to. Otherwise, why did you grab the blue sword?" On que, the boy regarded the blue fire still surrounding the blade that was still in his hand.

"That is no ordinary sword." The fire jumped upon the boy's jacket and began to burn it away as the fire spread to cover his entire body, "It was forged long ago from a material known as Aeglos. It was fairly easy to mine, since it's native structure is much like ice. Once enough was melted together, you could mold it into a powerful weapon capable of absorbing mana and retaining it for close to a millenia."

"But, due to it's high demand. The resource soon ran out and Aeglos is now a thing of legend." Madly spinning in pain and panic, Lloyd was unable to keep the blue flame from flowing into his mouth and nose as he tried to scream but no sound came. "Furthermore, most who touched weapons forged of Aeglos were overwhelmed by the sheer raw mana flowing out from it."

"The fact that you are still alive and conscious places you in the minority Lloyd Irving." Lloyd's face was completely blank and etched with pain as he knelt on the floor, his exsphere taking on the same blue glare as the fire that had burned away his clothes, "That particular sword is yours to do with as you will. It was originally part of the project that placed that exsphere on your mother in the first place, so it is only fitting."

"The mana that is burning your skin, overwhelming your senses and turning your insides out? It's also yours." Despite appearances, Yuan knew that the boy was still listening, "It doesn't matter, it was only there to awaken the real power within you."

"You don't have to say it." Yuan assured the child as the flames ceased and left him kneeling in place, "But I know you love her. Why else are you so willing to forsake the world for her sake? Remember that once you awaken and let it drive you forward. Seek knowledge from those wiser and older than you, especially me, but never let anyone else stir your path."

"That power is active, but don't rely strictly on it. You'll have to work yourself into collapsing until you can fully use it," Yuan stated as the boy fell forward onto the floor, "And speaking of collapsing."

'Sleep well, Lloyd Irving." Yuan said to the child as he walked out of the ruined living room, "And forgive me..."

With this move, Martel's True Will would be done.

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><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>

**First, I'll make one thing clear.**

**This will not be an evil Lloyd.**

**Chaotic-Good? Yes. Darker? Yes. Stronger and Smarter? Within reason.**

**But what you will see is a Lloyd who is still assertive and bold; but he'll be more knowing, aware and most importantly, focused.**

**His focus? Saving Colette. Spoilers: It won't be pretty.**

**Note: First experiment into an M-rated dark fic so feedback is very much appreciated.  
><strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**Copyright: I own nothing.**

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><p>Her first stop would be the Trient Ruins in the desert far south of Iselia. After that, she would have to cross the ocean to visit the Thoda Geyser and the Balacruf Mausoleum after going over the mountain pass. She would then visit the Tower of Mana and finally the Tower of Salvation where her journey would end.<p>

End the suffering of the world and her own life.

Despite knowing since she was ten that this was her fate, Colette Brunel was frightened and guilty for feeling that way. She was afraid to die, even though not dying would lead to the suffering of the world. She had been chosen for this task and no other could do it for her.

If that was the case then why was she sitting outside of Iselia crying? She shouldn't feel that way! She had to fulfill the will of the goddess or else, she had to follow the teachings of Cruxis.

Yet even as she said those words to herself, she didn't stop crying as she lied in the grass. How could she be so selfish?

As she wept more quietly, she felt a warming presence sit beside her and take her into his arms.

"Hey Colette." Lloyd softly said as Colette's fears were replaced with new ones while she selfishly took so much happiness from him just being there, "You're up a bit early..."

"Lloyd?" It was almost like a dream, but no, it was no dream. Colette quickly threw on her mental mask, the one she had sworn to use to keep anyone else from sharing her burden. As Lloyd released her, the girl giggled nervously, "Just...getting an early start for the day..."

"Funny," Lloyd lied back on the grass as Colette sat next to him wandering what he would say about-, "I thought that you wouldn't be leaving until sunrise."

Did he find out? Yes, she did lie to him, but he didn't know. She didn't want him to be grieved by what she would have to do. But now that he knew that she had lied to him-

"Oh well, you probably gave me the wrong time on accident..." Lloyd had really come out here by mistake? "It's gotta be hard keeping up with things now that you've gotta save the world from the Desians."

"I didn't forget about you Lloyd..."

"I know you didn't," This had to be a dream, because Lloyd had just grabbed her hand and was using the other to brush her hair out of her pleasantly stunned face, "That's why I remembered you and got here to make sure that I didn't miss you."

"That's what makes you such a great friend..." Colette squeezed Lloyd's hand as she gave a true smile, "Are you sure that you want to go with us?"

"I wouldn't be here if I wasn't." Seeing that someone was coming towards them, Colette abruptly released Lloyd's hand, perplexing him for a moment before he noticed and followed the glance of her eyes, "Hi Professor!"

"Lloyd?" Professor Raine, robed in her usual orange robes was politely pleased but also confused that Lloyd was here, "What are you doing here?"

"I woke up early so that I wouldn't miss you guys from leaving."

"I told him that he could come, Professor..."

"Colette..."

"Why not? Lloyd is strong and otherwise there would only be three of us." Colette knew that Raine was only going along with Colette's original desire, but now that he was here anyway, there was no point to him knowing the truth.

"Though if his abilities are still at question." Lloyd stood up as Kratos joined the conversation, his stoic face did not show anger but it did not give off a pleasant reaction Lloyd's unexpected presence, "It would be better if there were only three than traveling with a liable member."

"How about testing me then?" Lloyd offered lightly was Colette frantically looked between her dearly cared for childhood friend and the older man who was barring his way into this journey.

She mentally slapped herself for being so selfish but she couldn't help it. On one hand, she wanted Lloyd at her side, to give her strength and to be with him before the end. But on the other, she wanted Kratos to stop Lloyd and prevent him from feeling more pain from what was to come.

"Lloyd!" Raine stood before her teacher in panicked outrage and disapproval, "I understand that you want to help Colette, but recklessly challenging another swordsman is no way to-"

"I have no objections." Kratos stated much to Colette's increased shock, "But blame your fate if you are proved to be unworthy."

"This shouldn't be long, Colette..." Rolling her eyes and muttering something about "the male specimen", Raine just sat on the side as Lloyd nodded to Colette and addressed Kratos, "It's only a spar, we'll stop after three blows, deal?"

"Agreed."

"Be careful..." Colette said to Lloyd as Kratos started walking out into the field.

"You Dork...relax..." Lloyd's smile vanished when he noticed that she was even more worried, she didn't mean to. But this was all her fault, "I will be careful, Colette." Seeing him smile again cheered her up, but that good feeling faded away when he ran off to catch up with Kratos.

"Don't blame yourself for this..." Raine told Colette while nursing a budding headache in with her head.

"I'm the one who lied to him..." Colette sadly said as she watched Lloyd and Kratos pace out into the field, "Why couldn't I just say no?"

"Because you're Colette." The Professor was right of course. Colette couldn't bring himself to tell Lloyd that he couldn't go with her.

Because she wanted him to go. But at the same time, she needed to make him stay...why couldn't things be easy.

"What's going on?" Along with Lloyd's large green and white dog Noise came Raine's younger brother Genis. Confused at the battle that started out in the field, Genis sat down next to his sister, "Is that Lloyd?"

"Fighting Kratos, yes." Raine mildly answered as if she was not surprised in the least as Genis' eyes nearly fell out of their sockets, "Oddly though...this doesn't seem out of place."

"Raine..." His mouth ajar, Genis motioned again to his sister, "Do you-"

"Goddess...I do..." Raine slapped her face again and put on a concerned but serious face as the three of them watched the duel progress, "I'll have a few questions for him when this is done."

"Why?" Colette asked, concerned that Raine would ask an impossible question to keep Lloyd from coming or worse, "Did Lloyd do something wrong?"

"No Colette, he just seems to have practiced a lot and we need to make sure that he isn't sleep deprived."

"Oh no..."

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><p>"You dirty half-breed monster!" Yuan regarded the cowardly mayor as an insect yelling loudly at the foot prepared to crush it. If he had any true decency, he would have died trying to stop Forcystus' guards from "relieving" themselves with the mayor's secretary.<p>

But no, he just stood there and watched as the guards took turns. The coward kept watching, he didn't even try to grab her after they were done. He just stood there while the human woman's flower overflowed with the essence of her attackers, he didn't even try to stop the guards from killing her.

To him, this man was a sick dog barking at the moon.

"Would you like to know how many have said that to me before?" Yuan asked the man, satisfied when he smelt that the fool had wet himself, "Probably not."

"Likely as much as you deserve!" The man shouted, as though the greatest crime here was that half elves had broken in rather than the rape of his young secretary, "Well whats the problem? It's not like it isn't-" His patience thinned, the grand cardinal of the region slapped his golden arm cannon across the mayor's face and slammed the fool into the wall. Likely breaking a bone and another was sure to be broken when the green haired cardinal lifted the human up by the fool's throat.

"That'll be all Forcystus." Yuan stated, the desian grand cardinal spat in the human's terrified face as he threw the human down, "As I was saying, it is my displeasure to inform you that Lord Forcystus will soon raze your village to the ground for a Code Red-4 violation of the non-aggression treaty that you worked out between yourselves."

"What if we just gave you-"

"Therefore, I believe the death of the Chosen will suffice as payment along with the death of every man, the enslavement of your children and the shrill shrieking screams of your women as they are violated by us dirty disgusting mal-willed half-breed demons."

"You...You can't..." Now the mayor noticed two things, one was that his secretary was never there, not even the stains from her assault were ever present. Two, Yuan was holding out his hand and charging a small orb of man that gave off sparks of electricity, "But you said-"

"I said that Forcystus wouldn't kill you." Yuan clarified as he fired his attack through the human's chest, blasting out bone, muscle and blood onto the wood wall behind the fool and causing the coward to fall forward dead before he struck the ground, "I never said anything about myself, human."

"Shall I destroy the village-"

"No...only the Chosen's group." Yuan stated to the Desian Grand Cardinal, "Capture the Angelus Exsphere and the Chosen's Cruxis Crystal, the rest are expendable."

"Even the boy-"

"All who stand against Lord Yggdrassial are no different in his eyes." Yuan said, never making eye contact...otherwise Forcystus would figure out Yuan's intent, "I hope that you understand."

"Of course, Lord Fa-Kai." With that, Yuan didn't move as a rune appeared on the ground beneath him and he teleported out of the small town of Iselia as Forcystus stood up from where he knelt.

"Sir..." The green haired Desian turned to his waiting subordinate, "Everyone is positioned as you requested."

"Tell them to stay in their places until I give the signal." The soldier appeared shocked by his leader's orders, but was too frightened to speak of them, therefore Forcystus choose to humor himself, "Is there a problem?"

"Permission to speak freely?"

"Granted."

"My lord, this is madness..." The soldier slowly answered as if afraid that any wrong word would invoke his leader's wrath, "Why are we being ordered to kill the Chosen? I thought the Chosen was to be brought to Lord Yggdrassial as an offering to restore mana to the land."

"That is true, however," Forcystus worded his answer carefully to keep from revealing his own confusion, "I have been informed that this Chosen was...ill-chosen. In short, the humans deceived us into chosing the wrong girl and now we will amend that problem."

"How?" The soldier asked, unable to believe that the humans could have deceived them or Cruxis, "How could we be deceived by these disgusting humans?"

"I don't know." The grand cardinal admitted, there was something about the way that Lord Yuan relied his orders, "I intend to inquire of Lord Yggdrassial myself after this is concluded. For now, to your place."

"Yes my Lord." The soldier leapt out the open window into the forest as Forcystus shook his head at the mess that Lord Yuan had left. Fortunately, Lord Yggdrassial's edict had been copied and posted to the man's frightened skull and charmed to ensure that blood would not obscure his lord's command.

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><p>To say that Kratos stunned would be an understatement.<p>

He was amazed. He knew that he had felt something last night, something had happened to Lloyd. Of course it was the same seventeen year old boy with dual swords and a head strong will that wasn't very surprising now that Kratos knew where the boy got it from.

No, Lloyd seemed more focus.

His stance was a complete 180 from the mess that it had been during the battle with the "desians" and he was choosing his attacks more intelligently as well. Not to mention the calculated force in each of the boy's blows.

Blows that bore the unmistakable signature of mana.

Wielding an exsphere betrays that some mana would be used. But only elven blooded individuals could do so in an obvious manner befitting of a mage, sorceror, or an explicit magic user.

And now this child was somehow channeling mana through his body to his sword. As if he were channeling a spell through the blades themselves. Where did the child learn such a thing in one night?

As the dual drew on, Kratos also noticed that Lloyd himself was stunned at times by the mana that was flowing through his attacks. That proved that whatever had happened was nothing that Lloyd had initiated, at least nothing he initiated knowingly. He could press the boy for more answers, but Kratos realized that lengthening the match any further may draw unwanted attention.

Specifically from those who still seek for Lloyd's now very active exsphere.

"Very well, we will call it a draw." Kratos sheathed his sword as Lloyd stood up relaxed in confusion, but not in disagreement.

"Fine with me." Lloyd flung around both blades before sheathing them, convincing Kratos that the child's newfound focus had made an impact on the child's maturity.

"I am satisfied, Lloyd." Kratos stated as the two of them began to walk back to the others, "Despite your clumsy stance, defense and pace; You do possess adequate speed and attack, not to mention your determination in the face of infavorable odds. You were also able to adapt very well to unforeseen attacks and my spells."

"Does that mean I can go?" There was desire in the boy's voice, but also determination. If he was not allowed to accompany the Chosen, then he would follow her to the ends of the world and beyond.

"It was the Chosen's decision, I was merely testing to ensure that her judgement wasn't misplaced."

"You mean Colette?" There was the hint of a threat in the boy's voice, but the threat was not an misguided one. The boy meant what he had said, "That is her name."

"True." Kratos stopped walking as he prepared to give this boy one final test to confirm his suspicions. He swiped out his sword and watched Lloyd swerve back from the attack, duck under the blade while drawing his swords and brandishing the blades in a defensive stance as Kratos' suspicions were affirmed.

"What was that for?"

"To test your awareness." Kratos stated as he sheathed his sword and watched Lloyd do the same, "Well done."

"Thanks," Lloyd replied with a smile, "Sometimes you just realize stuff right out of nowhere."

"Like what?"

"I just decided to be there for Colette." Lloyd answered, "So I took the initiative and got up early, if I had just went on what Colette had told me then something might have happened that made you guys leave me."

"I see. So long as you do not interfere with the will of Cruxis."

"No promises." Kratos watched Lloyd stalk towards the others at a faster pace, anger burning off of his mood as Kratos maintained his own pace in thought as an unlikely but viralant thought came to his mind.

Did Lloyd Irving know the truth?

If so...who told him?

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><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>

**For the record, I still plan on having the party take the journey of regeneration, but with Lloyd knowing the truth about it, he'll take a few matters into his own hands to twik a few details for Colette's well-being.  
><strong>

**Note: First experiment into an M-rated dark fic so feedback is very much appreciated.  
><strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**Copyright: I own nothing.**

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><p>"Are you sure that you don't want me to go?" Genis knew where this would go. But he couldn't help it, he didn't want them to leave without a doubt that they wouldn't need him.<p>

"Genis...we've talked about this." Raine said to him as Lloyd and Colette stood nearby watching the siblings while Kratos sat next to Noishe, "The journey will be very dangerous and I would never forgive myself if anything happened to you."

"But you're letting Lloyd go!" Genis tried very hard not to give a glance to Lloyd for his help. Logically, asking Lloyd for back-up would not only lessen his chances of going, but would also decrease the certainty of Lloyd going with Colette, "Why can't I prove myself?"

"One, you are a child and two," Raine knelt down to her brother's level and gave him a tight hug as Genis held back tears, "You are my brother...In order to help Colette, I need to be completely focused and knowing that you're safe...will do just that."

"Even with the desians?"

"If I am correct, the desians of this region signed a non-aggression pact with Iselia." Kratos stated, "Though I could not speak for the other ranches."

"So the desians operate out of the ranches..." Lloyd thoughtfully said to himself while Genis saw the odd sight of Lloyd really visibly thinking, "How many of them are there...five?"

"No one knows for sure, but I wouldn't rule out the number being around that amount." Kratos answered, a slight influx of the voice told Genis that Lloyd may have guessed close to the exact number...at least the one that Kratos had in mind, "But this is the only ranch on this continent and outside of that, I do not know of any other possible bases of operations."

"Alright," Lloyd confidently stated, "As long as we avoid the desians, this shouldn't be too much of..."

"Lloyd! Colette!" The group turned to see a young boy desperately drag an older man towards them, a trail of blood marking their trail from within the forest, "Please...papa's hurt!"

"Oh no!" Colette cried as she and Genis ran over to help the father off of the tired and scared boy, "Professor!"

"Understood..." Raine calmly walked over and held out her staff over the bloodied man with two gashes in his stomach and side where blood streamed out in a scene that sickened Genis, "Try not to move Charles, you're hurt very badly..."

"Chosen...the village..." Charles muttered as Raine continued to heal him while Paul held onto Lloyd, "Desians..."

"What?" Lloyd asked before Charles grew more quiet, but was managing to breath easier, "What do you mean? What happened Paul?"

"Papa and I were out getting firewood for the forge..." The boy explained while still looking back at his father, "Then he told me to get down and some desians came...they started talking about attacking the village and...killing someone..."

"Who?"

"I don't know...they found us out..." Paul answered Kratos and didn't stop tears from streaming out of his eyes, "Please...you have to help the village!"

"Alright...I've done all that I can." Raine stated as she stood up from the stable Charles, his wounds were still there but his blood loss had ceased, "The worst is past, but he'll need a place to rest and recuperate."

"Noishe!" Noishe walked over to Lloyd and barked as Lloyd brought his attention to Paul and Charles, "Take them back to dad's...I'll be over there soon..." Noishe barked in acknowledgement as he gently picked up Charles and hurled him onto his back as Paul held on to Noishe's back before he left the party.

"Genis?" Did Raine pick up on his thoughts? "What's wrong?"

"Sis..." Was now the best time to tell her the truth? Tell her about going going to the ranch and everything that it might have led to?

"He's worried about the town." Lloyd interjected, likely to keep Genis from saying anything about what he caused yesterday, "So what are we standing around here for? We have to help them..."

"That is the Chosen's-"

"Lloyd's right!" Colette cried with a face that was brave and a bit uncertain, "I know that I'm supposed to start my journey...but how can I when my own family is killed while my back is turned?"

"Colette..." Genis knew just as well as his sister that this journey would go nowhere without Colette. Which meant that they would have to stand up to the desians. Besides that, it was the majority had already decided. Genis was all for helping the town with Lloyd and Colette while Kratos didn't seem to lean in either direction.

At least that was what Genis guessed.

"Alright, but we'll need a plan." Raine stated, cautiously on board for this counterattack, "And I mean an actual one, not one that we make up on the fly."

* * *

><p>"I won't repeat myself." Grand Cardinal Forcystus said to the humans huddled together on their knees, "Where is the Chosen?" It had been a smooth operation thus far. Going on information taken from the mayor, the Chosen was planning to leave this morning.<p>

So seeing as that the pact had already been stepped on, Forcystus saw no reason to round up the people in the town and have them hand over the Chosen. Considering that they were the one's who broke the treaty, Forcystus saw this as a suitable plan.

"We told you!" One human yelled out, "She's already left! Your days are numbered Desians!"

"Left?" Why was it that these humans never ceased to annoy him, the grand cardinal still could not figure out why to this day, "According to my scouts, she is still within this area and I would hate to cause unnecessary bloodshed."

"Unnecessary?"

"Meaning," He had no intention of firing, but Forcystus opened his arm cannon just to scare the little humans, "There is only one, maybe two of you lowly humans who I intended to kill."

"What?" A blond human asked as he stood up, "You can't do this!"

"I'm sorry, could you repeat yourself human?"

"I said! You can't hurt my daughter!"

"Frank!" The older woman next to the man spoke a bit late, Forcystus smiled at the human who had foolishly identified himself as the Chosen's daughter. Apparently rumors of the chosen's parentage weren't readily accepted by their progenator's, "The Iselia-Desian treaty still stands-"

"That idiot!" Forcystus blurted out-loud, he may have not liked this town's mayor but if he were still alive this whole process would be that much easier to sort out. Still, the grand cardinal mastered his emotions and addressed the elderly woman, "Oh...the only one who was informed was your mayor...pity..."

"Informed of what?" She truly had no idea about what had transpired. Typical humans, always being content to be led along like sheep.

"The treaty was breached." Forcystus said plainly, smirking bitterly as the elderly woman gave a look of utmost horror, "By a human from your town, a code red-4."

"What does that mean mother?" Frank asked the elderly woman.

"It means that someone intruded onto Desian territory..."

"Normally that would only constitute a code yellow which unlike my colleagues, I hardly care for." Forcystus admitted while the crowd listened with rising fear, "But not only did this human break into the actual ranch which is a code orange that would only require the responsible human to step forward..."

"But the human also attacked and murdered no less than four of my men before escaping his due consequences!" Forcystus wasn't particularly attached to those men, but his sudden flare of drama did increase the quiet panic in these townsfolk and even if he hadn't shown such a reaction, he had a feeling that they would do anything to simply not die, "This I will not allow. By the authority of Lord Yggdrassial, your Chosen will hereby be taken and executed for this heinous breach of our treaty."

"Who was this person anyway!" Frank very bravely demanded, Forcystus was strongly considering killing the human before any others got any stupid ideas, "How can you desians prove that he was from this-"

"Security cameras around their perimeter." Another human answered as he stepped out in front of the crowd, stains of blood barely seen on his red jacket, "This is my fault...I killed your men."

"Lloyd?" Frank asked in surprise as if he couldn't believe that the child was standing where he was, "Lloyd!"

"You?" It took a while to register, but Forcystus gradually recognized the human walking out to confront him, "Yes, I recognize your image child. Brave of you to step forward and admit your crimes."

"Lying is the path to thievery." The human named Lloyd stated, "And I won't have lives stolen for my actions."

"Brave words," Forcystus agreed as he opened his arm cannon and fired a mana charge at the brave but foolish youth, scorching the front of his jacket and sending him crashing through a building on fire, "Now I won't have to senselessly destroy your village just to find you."

"Lloyd!" The Chosen's father stood up and tried to run to where Lloyd had been launched but the elder woman grabbed his arm, "Mother...please..."

"Hush Frank..." She admonished and then turned to face the Grand Cardinal, "You have your culprit-"

"What did you say?" This old hag just didn't get it. Forcystus didn't like unnecessary violence, not because he cared for these inferior humans.

But because he hated messes.

"Mother!" The Chosen's father cried as the hag was shocked by the electricity that emitted from Forcystus' cannon. It was nowhere near enough to usually kill a living being, but with a frail human, even stun settings could cause problems. Though it wasn't as though she had much longer to live anyway.

"Next time, I won't hold back," Forcystus warned, his arm-cannon decharging while the Chosen's father tended to the old woman who wouldn't shut up, "Will you or anyone else presume to challenge my edict?"

"Yikes...that hurt..." The Grand Cardinal's eyes widened when that same damned boy emerged from the wreckage that he had been thrown into. A slight essence of mana emitted from his body as Forcystus noticed a glowing exsphere on his left wrist.

"Lloyd..." A female in a white dress said as she ran up to the boy, "Are you alright?" How did she get past his perimeter?

"Never better!" Lloyd stated to the blond girl, "So you're not just here for me, are you?"

"No..." This boy was perceptive, far more perceptive than someone like him ought to be. Furthermore, this child's exsphere was...no, it couldn't have been the one from Kvar's project...could it? "The best way to ensure that my edicts are not violated is to strike at the reason for this treaty's creation."

"You want the Chosen-"

"Colette!" The boy barked at the elder woman, the poor human was whipped by the Chosen, "He's after Colette to punish me for killing his men."

"Clever boy," Forcystus dryly complemented as he signaled his men to surround Lloyd and his companion, "Now step aside or the next blow will be lethal."

"I think I can take another one." This child was either very brave or a complete idiot to believe that he could stand against him.

"I don't believe you understand-"

"You're threatening Colette." The boy stated, cutting off Forcystus as he drew his twin blades, "That's all that I need to know."

"You intend to challenge me alone, boy?"

"Not alone." The girl brandished a pair of bladed chakrams as Forcystus's men prepared to attack, "Please don't say anything Lloyd..."

"What about be careful?" Cute, these two humans were obviously a couple, "Can you blame a friend for caring?"

"Before you throw your lives away, humans," Forcystus began as he drew out his golden lance and signaled for more men to be on standby, "I would be inclined to ask just how you broke through the perimeter of my men?"

"Normally I would tell you to blame your fate." That answer came in the form a blade that stabbed out through the chest of a desian on the grand cardinal's left as Forcystus turned and was stunned to see that answer, "Until you made the conscious mistake of targeting the subject of my contract."

"You..." It was impossible. Kratos, one of the four seraphim was standing against him despite the fact that he was also standing against Yggdrassial's will, "But...I see..." Forcystus quickly hid his shock as a new revelation dawned upon him. Apart from Pronyma, Forcystus was the only desian who knew of the identity of the four seraphim. If Kratos fell to him for defying Yggdrassial's will, then perhaps he would be rewarded for his faith.

He would take Kratos' place as a seraph.

"Fireball!" Just as Forcystus moved to face the traitor, a series of fireballs struck several of his men guarding the towns people as the grand cardinal turned and noticed a white haired youth behind a broken fence. This village was also employing elves or worse, half-elves?

Pity...

"Well played, human," Forcystus complemented, "You provoked the attack, all to lure me here and buy more time for the Chosen to begin her journey."

"Something like that, desian." Lloyd stated in a tone that neither owned to or denied the accusation, "We're not gonna turn a blind eye after your last attempt yesterday."

"Attempt?" Was this child implying that he had already attempted to kill the Chosen? It must have been those damn Renegades, how did they keep getting past his net of information?

Despite the circumstances, it had been a long time since Forcystus had been in a true battle. Despite the questions raging in his own mind, he would put down this uprising and bring his doubts to Lord Yggdrassail as soon as his will was accomplished.

Best of all, it would not be an easy task, exactly as Forcystus preferred.

That kept things interesting.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes: <strong>

**It doesn't look like it right now, but two major divergences are coming up just before the journey truly begins.**

**Assuming that one of them doesn't stop the whole story in it's tracks right?  
><strong>

**Note: First experiment into an M-rated dark fic so feedback is very much appreciated.**


	4. Chapter 4

If he had to be honest then Forcystus would admit to having better days.

What started as a simple incursion to kill the Chosen and bring her Cruxis Crystal to Lord Yggdrassial had now turned into a battle against her protectors and one of his lord's personally chosen Seraphim.

With his personal force now at less than a quarter of their original numbers.

"Well done..." Forcystus complemented Lloyd Irving as he clashed his arm-cannon against the human's swords, one of which gave off a subtle mana flow that the Gnashing Gale recognized, "The Chosen choose her protectors well..."

"Colette is a smart girl. What did you expect?" The Grand Cardinal drove his arm out of the clash and fired a mana blast that the boy barely managed to evade. Against his explicit orders, two of his soldiers ran up to try to kill the boy.

For their trouble, Forcystus grudgingly thought that their being slashed and left to drain onto the ground was appropriate enough.

Elsewhere, he noticed that his men were doing more poorly than he had feared. The Seraphim, the girl whom Forcystus strongly believed to be the Chosen, and the two traitors worked well as a unit against his soldiers while a few of the villagers had gained enough courage to attack as well.

But he couldn't simply stop his duel with the boy. No, he had a feeling that stopping to fight the Seraphim with this strange human would be more problem than it was probably worth.

"Bring out the creature!" He ordered one of his soldiers before he sent out an Exbone drone that fired a wind blade at the human, "I shall deal with you personally, Lloyd Irving."

"Guys..." The human said as "the creature" lumbered towards his friends and slashed to reflect a wind blade into the ground to Forcystus' amazement.

"We can handle this creature Lloyd." The older traitor assured the human as the Seraphim hesitated to attack the large dark green monster that struck him across the chest. Forcystus was actually rather surprised to have seen that happen. As Kratos created a barrier to protect from the beast's mana claw, the grand cardinal noticed his fearful expression.

This was not the first time that he had faced this creature...but then again if Kvar was correct...

"Kratos!" Thankfully, Forcystus was starting to see a silver-lining in this situation because there went the Chosen to save the Seraphim suffering post-trauma. She threw her chakram at the monster's arm and made a decisive hit strong enough to divert attention while the younger traitor used a well timed wind blade to cut through it's side and knock it off balance.

But before she caught her chakram, the girl was tackled by a desian who proceeded to knock away the other chakram while she struggled against him and another before thought dead desian who helped hold her down.

"Colette!" Regardless of the girl's ability to probably fight off two tired desians, Lloyd slashed through Forcystus's probe and ran to assist her. Leaving his back exposed to the Grand Cardinal's now charged attack.

He originally considered shooting the boy in the back, but the Grand Cardinal thought that the boy would either dodge the attack and that it would be in poor taste. The Seraphim would not suffer damage so he was not a viable target. Despite her position, Forcystus recognized the small desian group who were restraining and preparing to kill the girl as competent and chose not to attack.

As for the traitors...the boy's offensive magic had been a hassle but not as much as the older woman who was not only the more seasoned but she was also the healer of their group and standing next to a human child.

With that short thought, the choice was easy for Forcystus.

"Raine!" Lloyd cried after he cut down the desians that were hassling Colette as the Grand Cardinal smirked. The woman foolishly threw herself out to protect a stupid human child. It was rather sad to see a member of his kind sacrifice an arm for one of those pathetic beings.

Especially when he knew that she would do that.

"Sis!" The younger traitor cried out as the woman managed to stay calm despite the blood spraying out of the stump under her left shoulder. Now Forcystus could see a domino effect begin to take place. The younger traitor was the woman's brother and now that his sister was injured then he would rush over to make sure that she was okay.

Leaving the rest of his enemies without dedicated magic support against the rallying remnants of his men and a creature that still had enough steam to be partially useful.

As the boy cut down another soldier, the creature marched over in between him and the Seraphim and slammed it's fist into the ground creating a shockwave that knocked both off of the ground.

"Pity..." The Grand Cardinal admitted as he saw the seraphim struggle to get up under his shook, "To think that the mighty Kratos would be this weak. He is only human, why should I be surprised?"

"Lloyd!" To Forcystus' surprise, the seraphims shook off his post-trauma and stabbed his lightning charged sword through the creature's leg. Resulting in a powerful mana bolt that blew off the creature's leg as Lloyd recovered and attacked the creature with a spinning sword tempest that carved through his chest and the girl threw one of her chakrams into the creature's neck, slashing it's throat and spraying blood out in a magnificent mess.

Realizing that it's purpose had been fulfilled, the Grand Cardinal aimed his cannon at it's chest and fired. The blast was not too powerful, but it would be enough to react with the creature's unstable mana and create an rather colorful explosion.

"Well played..." Forcystus complemented after lowering his arm-cannon and watched the cloud of debris rise over where his foes had been defeated, "You almost had me beaten, but then you had to try and be a hero. Now I not only know where the Chosen is, but I've caused you to stumble all at once."

"This isn't over yet!" The boy flipped out of the debris and as he landed in front of the shocked Grand Cardinal, thrust his blade through Forcystus' chest and was shot back by a forceful burst of mana, "Not while I'm breathing!"

"That is a remarkably powerful exsphere." The Grand Cardinal told the human as he held his wound. While it wasn't lethal, the mana behind the attack caused a sort of pain that Forcystus was not used to, "Would you like to know where it came from?"

"It's the essence of my mother..." Lloyd aimed an enflamed strike that cut across the grand cardinal's chest as he stumbled back in surprise, "Who you bastards killed!"

"Us?" The Grand Cardinal asked as eh decided to take this fight seriously before he was injured further, "We didn't kill your mother, it was-" Just then, Forcystus was grabbed by the before-thought dead creature and crushed in it's powerful grip before he could react.

"Lloyd..." He heard the creature say while he struggled to escape. How was it still alive in the first? "Genis...Run!"

"Marble..."

"I am...sorry for everything..." The monster apologized to the traitor while Forcystus felt a powerful and unstable mana build within her, "You...were like a grandson to me...goodbye...Genis..."

"Marble no!" The creature exploded in spectacular fashion at that moment. Leaving the Grand Cardinal on the brink of his life, still standing in defeat, humiliation and destitute. Before him, the human boy had erected a partial barrier to avoid the blast, but still succumbed to his wounds and fell forward onto his face.

In this, the Grand Cardinal was content.

"Lloyd!" That wretched girl ran to the boy's side and moved him into his lap, "Kratos! Lloyd's hurt!"

"Lord Forcystus!" Thankfully, the grand cardinal was not neglected. He especially appreciated the quickness of his remaining men due to the bleeding stump where the arm operating the sadly sacrificed cannon used to be.

"Lloyd Irving...as long as..." Forcystus breathed before his men grabbed him and allowed him to fall into their grip, "As long as you have that exsphere...you will be hunted..."

"Likewise, as long if you try to hurt Colette."

"We return to the ranch!" Forcystus commanded his men and as they turned in retreat, he decided to give one last warning to these humans, "Make peace with your goddess while you can humans! The next time you see a desian march for you...it will be your final hour..."

And they would remember why he was named the Gnashing Gale.

* * *

><p>"Just look what has happened here!"<p>

"Grandmother please..." Colette pleaded with her frantic grandmother as Lloyd stood by with Kratos while Genis sat beside his unconscious sister, "We both knew that this would happen eventually..."

"I..." Lloyd said, looking around at the destruction that had happened here, "I don't know what to say..."

"Child..." The old woman started, "I cannot pass judgement on the circumstances that caused you to act as you did...but I thank you for saving..."

"Colette..." Lloyd finished for Phaidra, "No need, that's what I've wanted to do all along."

"You think that's gonna be enough!" One of older villagers stepped out of the scared and angry crowd, one of the mayor's relatives, "People have died! The mayor was found in a pool of his own blood! The desians have marked you as their enemy!"

"Just like they did me." Colette pointed out to the man.

"It wasn't just Lloyd!" Genis stood up with teams streaming out of his eyes, "It was my fault too..."

"Genis..."

"I talked Lloyd into going to the ranch with me to meet...Marble...They started hurting Marble and Lloyd fought them...to protect someone that all of you have turned your backs on!"

"You little..." The man balled his fists in outrage at Genis' words, "Who are you to judge us? It was either the treaty or have the desians enslaving all of us! Just look at how the alternative turned out!"

"You humans..." Genis mumbled, "You're all the same...what about the attack on Colette from yesterday!"

"Genis has a point." Kratos pointed out neutrally, "From what I observed, neither the Chosen nor the townsfolk here had provoked that attack and I did not see your mayor at the very least throw a complaint at the desian leader."

"You're just a mercenary!" Another younger bandaged villager shouted, "Don't pretend that you know about us-"

"Enough!" Lloyd spoke up, "I get it, you're looking for someone to blame who you can actually get revenge on. Alright, here I am. I killed those desians-"

"Because I told him to."

"Colette!"

"What? No Colette!"

"Colette..." Frank was stunned at what his daughter had just said, "Is that true?"

"I wanted to know..." Colette stated slowly, "All my life, I've been told to stay away from the desians. But as the Chosen, I'm to protect the world from them and yet I've been sheltered away...until they attacked yesterday..."

"Colette...stop..."

"So I asked Lloyd and Genis to go to the ranch...I never wanted any of it to happen but..." Colette went on, ignoring Lloyd's shocked expression and Genis' increasing guilt, "Everything that they did falls squarely on my shoulders. Even if they were doing the right thing, I accept the blame for all that it led to."

"Chosen..."

"Don't worry..." Colette told the older villager who was now seemed ashamed of what he had said earlier, "To atone for all that has happened because of my foolishness...I exile myself from Iselia..."

"Colette!"

"What are you doing?"

"Lloyd...I can't just let you and Genis suffer alone..."

"And neither will I." Lloyd said to his beloved friend, "To atone for my crimes...my foolishness...I will accompany the Chosen and will not return until she does...this journey will be my atonement...for everyone who has died..."

"Mine too!" Genis shouted before he looked back to a mumbling and sweat-drenched Raine, "I'm sorry sis...but I can't stay here...not with everything I've done."

"Chosen...my little Colette..." Phiadra said with tears, almost wanting to run over and hug her grand-daughter, "I am shamed to do this...but I accept the conditions of your exile...effective...immediately..."

"What kind of Chosen are you!"

"Enough!"

"No!" The villager in question pointed to where his son lied with a missing leg, "Don't you know what you caused you little bitch!"

"What was that!" Lloyd roared as he drew his swords to the crowd's panic, "Come here and say that in front of us!"

"Let's go Lloyd..." Colette turned away and grabbed Lloyd's hand as he shook at how some in the crowd had turned on Colette so quickly, "Lloyd..."

"Alright..." He squeezed her hand lightly and turned away from the booing crowd. "Look after Raine...no one will blame you for what happened."

"This is...this is all my fault..." Genis said on his knees beside his sister, "I'm so sorry...both of you...I didn't mean for any of this to happen..."

"Of course you didn't. No one ever means for mistakes to made." Kratos stated while he himself was lost in thought, "We will need a place to rest for the night."

"We'll be at Dirk's, Genis..." Lloyd said to his now quiet friend, "If you still don't want to come after all of this...we'll understand."

"What about Raine?"

"Our home wasn't damaged, we'll look after her and Genis there." Frank assured her daughter, "It isn't right for you young ones to shoulder all of the blame for this...no parent should have to exile their child for their own cowardice..."

"Making a hard decision for the sake of preservation is not the act of a coward." Kratos said to the sad father, "Let's go." With that, the three of them left the ruin village of Iselia without looking back...

* * *

><p>"So that's the gist of it." Dirk set down his empty mug while sitting in the living room with his son, Colette and a standing Kratos, "Can't say that it's the best thing that could've happened, but at least the two of you are alright."<p>

"I'm sore all over...you call that alright?"

"If it's so bad maybe I can make you chop wood to shut ya up?" Dirk asked gruffly, making Colette while Lloyd's face lost a shade of color, "Thought so lad. You're welcome to stay for as long as you need to. This isn't part of the village so you can come here whenever you want, the door will be open."

"Thank you Dirk." Colette said before she looked down at her untouched hot chocolate. Next to her, Lloyd gently rubbed her shoulder to comfort the girl.

"Dirk...could I have a word with you?"

"What for?" Dirk asked the before-silent Kratos, "Alright, I don't really know ya all that well so why not...keep on your best behavior boy!"

"What are you talking about?" Lloyd asked as Kratos and Dirk went outside and left him alone with Colette, "He acts like I try to break everything when he's gone."

"I don't think that was what he was talking about..." Colette pointed out while blushing, "He was probably teasing you though..."

"Yeah..." Lloyd agreed as he saw her small smile turn sad, "Do you regret it?"

"No. Nothing really changes now..."

"I'm really sorry about where all of this led..." Lloyd apologized for what may have been the tenth time since they left Iselia, "Raine...the village...Marble...I didn't think through my actions and I'm..."

"Why should you be sorry? You were only doing what was right. Besides, the desians already broke the treaty and already attacked the village."

"But...why do I still feel like it was all my fault..." Maybe it was knowledge that he had a share of blame or sheer guilt, right then, Lloyd felt like he had caused all of the damage in that village, "Whether it was or it wasn't...I still feel responsible for everything that happened..."

"Then we'll seek atonement together..." Colette assured Lloyd, "The Goddess knows that you're a good person Lloyd. I'm sure she'll forgive you if you show your work for atonement."

"Right..." From the voice of his angel came that sting. The sting that told him about why all of this was happening that those people in that village were going to let her die for a lie... "Hey Colette...can I talk to you later?"

"What for?" Colette inquired, "Why can't we...talk now?"

"Now?" Lloyd asked taken off guard, "Well...this isn't something that I've thought out...It's about...well..." Lloyd drew out one of his swords and watched Colette's eyes reflect the blue aura that the sword gave off.

"Oh...Raine and Genis were really curious about that..." Colette said while admiring Lloyd's blade, "It's mana...but it's...different..."

"That's part of what I wanted to talk to you about." Lloyd replied and took her hand in his after placing the sword on the table, "But what I'll have to say...you won't like it."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**Now we see our first major divergence in the story with another one on the way. The Healer's lost an arm thanks to the Desians and Lloyd may be about to tell Colette the truth about her "journey."**

**Some will probably wonder why I had the first part focus on Forcystus and I can see why. Mainly, I wanted the battle to progress from his point of view and to look into how a tactical enemy might react and function while battling the good guys since their thoughts and standards won't be the same as the heroes.**

**As for why Kratos wasn't as effective as some would hope, keep his backstory in mind and how recently a certain incident happened.**

**Here's a question for people who played the game. How come the point that desians apparently attacked the village before the Marble incident is hardly brought up? I know that they were Renegades, but the heroes and the Iselians don't know that. How come no one else became a bit more panicked or pissed about an apparent breach in the treaty?  
><strong>


	5. Chapter 5

"Colette?" What was Lloyd thinking? Of course she was like this? Even though the aeglos sword was no longer potent, whatever Yuan had done to it had allowed it to convey the knowledge that he was given.

That he chose to receive.

He had told Colette everything that he had learned. The truth about Cruxis and the Desians. The meaning behind the Journey of Regeneration and what it meant to those who could not see it. That there was no goddess and the Chosen was a tool to perpetuate a four thousand year old cycle.

Then she touched the sword.

She was quiet after he had told her everything...too quiet. Quiet enough that he didn't even feel her take his blade and somehow activate the angelic rune along it's tip. After it's contents played, she dropped the sword to the ground and incoherently stuttered in angelic while she stood in place.

"You're...you're not lying..." Colette mumbled, her legs losing strength as she stood shaking. Her hands were clenched on her sides as her hair hid her eyes, "You didn't make this up. Everything you told me was...was..."

"I'm sorry about this..." "But I couldn't go on without you knowing the truth. I...I...hoped that you wouldn't be able to-"

"Believe you?" Colette asked as tears dropped down from her eyes, "Lloyd...you've never lied to me about anything. Why would you start now...even with everything that you know."

"It may seem like I'm being selfish...maybe I am." Lloyd walked towards her, it was a daring move to be sure. But he had to let her know that he was with her, "But you had to know, even if you didn't want to. I couldn't just let you throw away your humanity and your life for some sick game. If you need more proof then I'll-"

"I BELIEVE YOU!" She shouted and sprang onto Lloyd, clamping her arms around his body as she cried into his shoulder.

"Colette..." Lloyd felt water build in his own eyes as he returned her embrace.

"I'm sorry..." Colette said in between her tears, "It's just that part of me...doesn't want to believe you. But I know better...and it's disgusting that the feeling is still there. Everything is explained just from how you were talking..."

"Colette?"

"When I was taught to read the angelic language, I was taught how to tell the faithful from hypocrites." She looked into Lloyd's eyes, revealing beautiful eyes streaming with tears and filled with sorrow and doubt, "So when you were talking, I could tell that everything you said was the truth..."

"Lying is the first path to thievery. Colette..."

"I'm sorry...I'm trying to be brave but...I just...I'm so sorry..."

"Don't apologize." Lloyd sternly said, slightly frightening Colette, "You don't have any reason to apologize to me or to anyone. If anyone should apologize it's Cruxis for this sick scheme..."

"Why?" Colette desperately asked, "Everyone who...who came before me...were they just repeating the cycle? How could they decide someone's well-being like that? Why us...why me...why did they lie to everyone? To us? To me?"

"Not everyone knows that it's a lie." Lloyd admitted when Colette buried her face into his chest. His eyes darkened as he thought of the people in Iselia and how they so easily turned on this angel in his arms, "They believe that it works, so they accept it. But that...that doesn't make it right."

"I just..." Colette became quiet but kept a loosened hold over Lloyd's body, "Could you hold me?"

"Alright." Lloyd said to her as he lifted her off of her wearied feet. He carried her to his room and laid her down on his bed. But she didn't want him to let go, so he reluctantly laid down with her. When she drifted off to sleep, Lloyd kissed her forehead and feel to sleep himself.

Holding her, just as she had asked.

* * *

><p>"So repeat this to me Forcystus." The Lord of Cruxis slouched in his throne as the green haired grand cardinal bowed before him, visibly shaking from the process of his arm's regeneration, "You confess before your lord that you and your men attempted to kill the Chosen despite her importance?"<p>

"And that you did so because you were following my orders?" Yggdrassial asked the Grand Cardinal who remained silent, "Orders that I did not directly give to you, but were handed down through one of my Seraphs?"

"Yes my lord." Forcystus answered, "Seraph Fa-Kai told me that your orders were to kill the Chosen..."

"I see..." Yggdrassial nodded his head to dismiss the desian's guards, "Very well, the failure and deception is not yours Forcystus."

"Thank you lord Yggdrassial." Forcystus said, as those angelic guards would have executed him at Yggdrassial's words, "What of Seraph Fa-Kai? Will he punished for his deception?"

"Normally that would be much for a desian grand cardinal to ask." Yggdrassial mused as Forcystus bowed down his head, "But, you have suffered greatly for his actions. Yuan will suffer in time."

"In time?"

"Yes." The Lord of Cruxis said, "It appears that he is trying to derail my plans for the new age. Tell me, did you suffer injury from the one who bears the Angelus Crystal?"

"Yes my lord." Forcystus rubbed the raw skin of his new arm as his face hardened, "I underestimated the boy and was stricken by him. He appears to be the Chosen's main protector."

"What was his name?"

"Lloyd Irving. He wore a red jacket and wielded twin swords. He was also able to use powerful magic despite being a human. He could have ingested Aionis or..."

"Came into contact with Aeglos" Yggdrassial mused as Forcystus gritted his teeth, "I was wondering why those renegades stole an aeglos sword. Yuan, you cleaver little fox."

"My lord?"

"Of the grand cardinals, you have proven to be the most faithful apart from Pronyma." Yggrassial complemented, "Perhaps this should be rewarded with an additional deal of trust...especially due to...Lloyd Irving..."

* * *

><p>Lloyd opened his eyes, the rays of dawn peeking through his window to beacon the new day.<p>

The beginning of his journey.

Colette was still in his arms sleeping soundly and completely at ease with Lloyd. He carefully slipped out of her arms and let them rest on the bed, she would probably wake up soon anyway. He almost didn't want to leave her peaceful sleeping form.

But he had to get ready.

"There you are." Lloyd heard his father say from his open door. Lloyd gulped and walked up to the dwarf who held him under his view, "How is she?"

"Shaken...by everything that happened yesterday..." Lloyd replied, "It...was a lot to take in..."

"Aye, you have a point lad." The dwarf agreed, likely referring to the events in Iselia, "Here."

"What's this?" Lloyd's eyes widened when he realized that it was the necklace that he had started on until...Yuan appeared. Except that the jewel was more runic and covered with the angelic language.

"Something that Kratos helped me forge." Dirk explained, "He said that it was a "special crest" for Colette."

"Special?"

"It's a rune crest, a legendary type of key crest that can only be found in legends." Dirk said aloud, "I don't know what is going on, but he said that it was important for me to make this."

"Dad..."

"Just give it to her as a birthday present." Dirk told the young man, "But you'll be crafting her ring, here me?"

"Ring?" Lloyd blushed when he picked up what his father meant, "Dad!"

"Don't be stubborn boy." Dirk gave his son a pat on the back while laughing, "Whatever you have to do, just don't forget that your father's behind you."

"Dad..." Lloyd saw his father bring out a sheathed pair of sabers and placed them in the young man's hand.

"Take these son." Dirk said to his son, "Some of the best that I've ever forged."

"Thank you..."

"Your friends are in the living room." Lloyd gave a glance to Colette before he walked past his father, "She'll be fine, go on boy."

"Alright." Lloyd said to his father who went off to his room while Lloyd went to the living room to see a friend he expected and someone that he didn't.

"Hey Lloyd."

"Genis." Lloyd said to his young friend, "Professor Sage?"

"Hi Lloyd." The older elven woman greeted as Lloyd began to frown, having spotted the deflated sleeve where her arm used to be, "Before you say anything, Genis already told me everything. While I'm not happy about my arm, I'm not going to do two things. Blame the two of you for what happened and stay out of this journey."

"Professor-"

"I mean..." The woman composed herself until, "HOW CAN I MISS THE RUINS OF TRIET RUINS! NOT TO MENTION THE BALACRUF RUINS OR THE TOWER OF MANA! THIS IS THE JOURNEY OF A LIFETIME AND YOU WANT ME TO STAY HOME OVER A SILLY LITTLE ARM! THESE THINGS CAN BE GROWN BACK, I MEAN I CAN'T RIGHT NOW BUT WHO KNOWS!"

"Uh..."

"Don't even try Lloyd." Genis said as Raine continued, "Believe me, I did for far longer than I should've."

"That's right." Raine stated, "Besides, someone needs to teach Genis healing magic until I can cope."

"Guys..." Lloyd didn't know what to say, so he just went with the least that he could do, "Thanks for coming."

"In return though." Raine started and pointed to one of the swords sheathed on Lloyd's belt, "You're going to tell me how you learned to channel mana through your body and I'm not taking no for an answer."

"Alright..." Lloyd agreed, unsure of how to gauge the response that the professor would have.

"We should leave soon." Kratos entered through the front door with Noishe sitting outside, "Now the desians will be actively hunting not just the Chosen, but all of us now."

"Kratos..."

"To try and cast blame would be a waste of time." The mercenary said to Genis, "What has happened has happened and can't have happened any other way."

"How do you know?"

"We are still alive." Kratos said to Lloyd, "And as long as you are alive, you can still work to atone for whatever mistakes you have made. The mistakes themselves are for you to judge."

"So live and learn, right?" Lloyd said, "As soon as Colette is ready, we move out. Where's the first seal professor?"

"The ruins of Trient." Raine answered with an unfurled map, "It's a few days southeast of Trient which is in the desert itself, the location of the Fire Seal and the Summon Spirit of Fire, Efreet."

"Sounds fun." Genis unenthusiastically replied and lit up when Colette entered, "Hey Colette."

"Genis, Professor...thank you for still wanting to come."

"Colette..." Raine walked over and reflexively moved her left shoulder before correcting and placing her right hand on Colette's shoulder, "I said I'd be there for you through to the last seal and that's not changing."

"Me too." Genis chimed in and was shocked when Colette pulled him into a hug.

"Lloyd." She said as she ran over to the young man and embraced him, kissing him on the check as she did, "Thank you..."

"Any...anytime..." Lloyd saw something very different about Colette's attire. Her jacket was gone and replaced with a simple white sleeveless dress with blue patterns along it with the shoulder cloths from her original attire still in place.

"Oh...sorry..." Colette apologized, "My jacket was torn yesterday...so your dad gave me this."

"Why does that..."

"That was...Anna..." Lloyd jolted his glance to Kratos who looked like he saw a ghost. But seeing Lloyd, Kratos' glance returned to his normal stern look, "Prudent of you Colette, it suits you."

"Uh...yeah..."

"Thank you." Colette said with a blush on her face, "Well everyone, now it's time to depart. I know that I've been really clumsy, but I'll try my best to make sure that everyone comes back alive from this journey."

"Everyone..." Raine glanced to the side for a moment for reasons that Lloyd knew of, "Alright Colette and I'll try my best not to slow anyone down."

"You won't Professor." Lloyd assured his teacher, "Ready?"

"Let's go."

* * *

><p>Deep within the Trient Ruins sat a simple well. A well that contained the very fiery essence of Efreet himself, it was this fire that helped forge the Sword that Mithos' holds next to his throne.<p>

It was also here that the Seraph's most hated prisoner was kept.

Yuan exhaled deeply while the chains moved and a figure was raised out of the depths of the well. Hot magma dropped off to reveal a naked, but intact though smoked body much to Yuan's disappointment.

He often wondered if he should kill the man now.

"Is my execution about to start?"

"How long have you been here?"

"Four Thousand years," The prisoner answered boredly, Yuan marched towards the edge of the pit as the man chuckled, "A man can dream, no?"

"I am even less inclined to kill you today." Yuan informed this much hated figure, "Soon, this cycle will all end."

"So you're finally gonna stand up to that brat?" The prisoner asked as he chuckled, "No wonder he got his sister-"

"As for his sister's death." Yuan pulled his arm back into his cloak, using patience formed from thousands of years of practice to restrain himself from killing the coughing prisoner, "I am staring the reason in it's face."

"In that case, perhaps you should look in a mirror as well."

"Security will be placed within the ruins." Yuan stated, "I hope you don't find this problematic."

"Have I ever had a choice?"

"Of course not, I thought it polite to inform you." Yuan mockingly retorted, somehow this man still infuriated him even after four thousand years, "Enjoy the preview of hell."

"All three of you have a place already." The man stated as kept a deathly glare on Yuan while being lowered back into the pit, "I'll greet you as brother when I finally get there."

"Not just yet, murderer."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**This was a hard chapter to write because I wasn't very sure about how to write Colette's reaction to the Big Lie.**

**For her, it's like the equivalent of a Christian finding out that God is addicted to crack, Jews discovering that they are not the chosen people or Jihadist Muslims finding out that there are no 72 virgins waiting for them in heaven. Or Highlanders discovering that the Source can't be claimed by evil, so killing each other until only one is left is rendered pointless. **

**Oh wait...that happened in Highlander: The Source...and how did highlander fans react to that abomination?  
><strong>

**It's the foundation of her entire life since she was born and she's finding out from someone who has never lied to her and can actually prove it that she is nothing more than a tool for a system of control and suffering. She's been raised to believe that she was part of a greater good, but now she discovers that she was part of a greater evil.  
><strong>

**So what are they journeying for now? You'll see.**

**Also, Colette's new costume is influenced by Bianca from Dragon Quest V and could symbolize a new life that she'll be taking. What will that life be? How will her sweet demeanor and selfless personality change now that the dark truth has been revealed?**

**Stay tuned and find out.  
><strong>


	6. Chapter 6

"Why do keep tossing Lloyd?"

"I'm still hot, alright?"

"You've been wearing a heavy jacket in the middle of a desert, Lloyd." Genis muttered as Lloyd kept tossing in the bed that they had to share, "Why are you so surprised about the heat?"

"I've never been in the desert, alright Genis?"

"Neither have I..." Genis admitted, "Just get some sleep."

"I'm going to get some air first."

"First Kratos...now you..." Genis laughed as Lloyd got out of the bed, "Wonder if it's a human thing..."

"Probably," Lloyd admitted with a smirk, "See ya in the morning."

"See ya." Genis muttered as Lloyd closed the door of the inn room behind him and walked out onto the second floor balcony.

Looking up at the clear night sky and seeing the moon shine down, Lloyd thought back to the reason why he was here.

And realized that he didn't have a clue.

Even after knowing the truth about the Journey and what would happen to Colette, he still couldn't figure out a plan to liberate Colette and Sylvarant from this system of control.

What would be the alternative? That was the most frustrating part, as if fate itself was conspiring to keep him locked in this damned maze.

"I'm not going to be some damned caged rat...AND NEITHER WILL COLETTE!" Lloyd cried as she slashed out with his sword, making a long scratch along the outer wall as he sensed someone nearby, "I know you're there! Show yourself!"

"But do you know where I am?" Lloyd spun around to have his blades blocked by the armored wrist of Yuan.

"Just knock next time, alright? Lloyd asked as he sheathed his swords and brushed the sweat from his forehead.

"You seem awfully trusting of a man you've only met once."

"Trustworthy or not, we're both after the same thing."

"In a way, we are and we aren't." Yuan stated, "For instance, I actually have a plan."

"Which involves me?"

"Yes, but it has been in motion for longer than you've been born." Yuan said with a smirk, "So what have you been doing in the mean time?"

"I've been thinking."

"A dangerous pastime."

"I know." Lloyd admitted with a smile, "The cruxis crystal that Colette was given is actually an exsphere."

"What?" Lloyd had a bad feeling when he saw Yuan's surprise, "How did you figure that out?"

"After your visit, I'd been thinking." Lloyd went on, "Ever since Colette received that crystal, she's been more endurant and reflexive during battle. Something I'd noticed had completely gone up since before the trip to the Martel Temple."

"So you put the pieces together." Yuan mused with a smirk, "That explains the necklace that she wears."

"Knew it. You are spying on us."

"My men only do their job." Yuan explained as Lloyd reached for the handle of his sheathed blades, "They're part of a separate organization that I use to oppose Cruxis in secret while retaining public figure to Lord Yggdrassial.

"Alright..." Lloyd decided to accept Yuan's explanation and continued, "If a cruxis crystal is just an advanced exsphere then how come no other Chosen has ever used it to rise up against Mithos?"

"Apart from the obvious?" Lloyd tipped his head to the side and raised an eyebrow, "First off, relay what you know about exspheres."

"Let's see." Lloyd thought, "They allow you to use special abilities with innate mana...you heal faster...you're more resistant to pain and disease...and without a key crest...you turn into a monster when you remove it."

"Because..."

"The exsphere is directly linked to the user's body!" Lloyd said with a louder volume, "And it warps that person..."

"Bravo Lloyd." Yuan said as he clapped, "Now you see why giving Colette that exsphere was a good move."

"Wow...good thing that I did."

"You didn't know..."

"I just didn't think about it at the time." Lloyd admitted, "Not too much..."

"Serves you well either way." Yuan stated, "While more powerful, cruxis crystals show the same qualities as a normal exsphere. At each seal, mana flows into the cruxis crystal, awakening it more and granting it's bearer angelic abilities."

"At the cost of their humanity." Lloyd grumbled, remembering the system that the crystal was apart of, "So the Cruxis Crystal is actually harming them as the chosen becomes more angelic?"

"Exactly." Yuan stated, "I'm not really sure what will happen now that Colette has a key crest...a rune crest from the look of it too."

"Dad made it." Lloyd explained, painfully remembering when he had quickly lied to Colette the day before they're departure, "It was...actually supposed to be her birthday present...but I got sloppy and forgot about it until well...all of this."

"Not surprising."

"Hey!" Lloyd shouted in outrage before he calmed down, "Anyway, dad finished it for me and made it into a Rune crest, but I don't know where he got the material for a rune crest."

"Especially since one of those ingredients shouldn't be accessible to anyone." Yuan noted, "Regardless of the means, you'll now have an edge. But if you continue on this Journey, you won't be able to keep your companions in the dark forever."

"You mean Kratos?"

"So you've noticed?"

"I don't think he'll do anything," Lloyd said as he watched Yuan's glance sharpen, "But he does seem to ask me a lot of questions when I speak up."

"Maybe you should be more quiet about your intentions."

"Why should I?" Lloyd asked, feeling rage at this quiet manipulation that was about to claim Colette's humanity and life, "Colette's not going to die because of Cruxis' selfish goals and I'm going to make sure that nothing happens to Colette."

"Nothing?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Something has happened to the girl." Yuan stated solemnly, "You haven't noticed the changes in the girl's demeanor? Her stance? You've already changed her, you've exposed a lie that substantiated and held up her entire life. She's likely in the middle of a depression brought on by all of this."

"She's seemed fine to..." On a thought, Lloyd realized that she was doing what she always did, "Damn it...why isn't she telling me?"

"Why don't you go ask her?" Yuan asked as he signed, "You've placed her into no man's land, Lloyd. If you continue on the journey as is, Remial will discover that Cruxis' Chosen has gone astray. This has never happened before on a Regeneration Journey, who knows what could happen."

"That's why I'm here-"

"It can't just be you." Yuan interrupted, "Even with the Angelus Crystal, you're still one person, you need to ensure that Colette will stay strong mentally and spiritually through this ordeal. Otherwise, anything you do to help her will only stagnate and doom her."

"You might be right." Lloyd admitted as another thought came to his mind, "Hey, how is the mana channeled between this world and the other world?"

"You're finally asking about that?" Lloyd grumbled for the half-elf to get to the point, "Why are there four seals in the journey? What do they correlate to?"

"They're just seals..." Lloyd thought out loud and he started remembering all of those lessons from the Professor about the summon spirits and how at each seal... "The summon spirits...that's it! The seals awaken the mana around the summon spirits! Which means that there are four seals in the other world that turn off when the chosen of this world completes their journey."

"Bravo." Yuan complemented, "So what do you plan to do?"

"I guess form a pact with them...that way, we'll be able to control the mana's flow..." Lloyd figured, "But I don't know how to do that..."

"Continue on your journey to the Trient Ruins, Lloyd. I'm sure something will...turn up..."

"Like you did? That may be-" When Lloyd turned back, Yuan was already gone. "Presuming too much..."

"Hi Lloyd..." Lloyd nearly fell off the rail when he noticed Colette, "Were you talking to someone?"

"Just someone that I ran into," Lloyd answered and blushed when he saw that Colette was wearing a night dress and looked troubled, "What is it Colette?"

"Can...I talk to you about something?"

"Sure, I'm all ears anytime."

* * *

><p>"He's been practicing...not bad." Yuan said as he walked away from Trient's entrance. He was actually standing where that scratch had been made in the inn's wall. Not only was the boy's power growing, but his senses were becoming more attuned.<p>

"When given something that he can use, he does rather well."

"I figured it wouldn't be long for you to see my hand in this."

"You hid your presence well back in Iselia." Kratos stated from behind Yuan, "But you've dropped your guard this time."

"No matter what you do, everything is already in motion." Yuan declared as he flourished his double-bladed weapon, "Not that you will do anything, correct?"

"You know that this will change nothing." Kratos reminded his fellow seraphim as he drew out his sword and shield, "As long as Mithos controls the Origin Sword, the worlds will remain divided."

"Maybe I don't care about the worlds, Kratos." Though Yuan admitted that the chance to kill Kratos here was tempting, "Dividing them was a good idea, I just don't like Mithos' obsessive selfishness or the millions of young lives that he's condemned to die."

"You wait until now?"

"I didn't have Lloyd before." Yuan said as he calmed down and sheathed his weapon when Kratos did likewise, "Now he'll spur himself on to destroy Mithos' plans. Oblivion or heaven, as long as Martel's true will is fulfilled and she herself freed from the Seed, I will be content."

"Even if it damns one of the worlds? Maybe even both?"

"We already have the blood of millions on our hands," Yuan said, himself remembering that this was why he placed the keys in Lloyd's hands and not his, "Entire generations stretching back four thousand years...it would be a mercy for future generations not to suffer what they're forefathers did."

"Is that Martel would have wanted?"

"Thanks to your silence, we will never know." Yuan bitterly reminded his former friend, "In any case, everything depends on Lloyd now."

"And the ninja from Mizuho?"

"A beneficial asset for Lloyd to use as he sees fit."

* * *

><p>"That was a lot...harder...than I thought it would be..." A black-haired ninja said in exhaustion after she pulled herself out of the burning wreckage of the Rheihard that she'd stolen. It's damage upon take off and then damage that she took once she got over to this world...she was surprised that she made it this far, "Thankfully, I can now...play the...waiting game..."<p>

"Waiting game? Who are you waiting for?" She watched a knife fly into her face and tilted her body back in time to avoid the projectile and throw a card at the attacker. The card slit the desian's throat as she shifted into a combat stance.

"Shit!" Sheena spat when she saw other desians enter the scene to investigate the burning wreckage, "What the hell are you guys doing here?"

"Took the words right out of our mouths woman." A desian soldier said as he and his cohorts surrounded the ninja from Mizuho, "Make sure she's alive enough for questioning."

"And fun?"

"HELL'S WRONG WITH YOU!" The desian captain bashed the soldier's head against a nearby boulder and then pulled him to his feet, "She's a filthy human!"

"Sir..." As the captain beat up his soldier and the others watched, Sheena took advantage of their distraction and leapt over them and dashed for the ruins.

"What?" Sheena heard the captain asked after beating up his cohort, "Where did she go?"

"She jumped over us while you were arguing."

"USELESS ASS MAGGOTS!" The Captain screamed as Sheena leapt into a nearby hole next to a wall and crouched down in a lightly flooded corridor. "Don't let her find the seal! Kill the bitch if you have to!"

"Sir!" A Sheena listened through the air, she heard the soldiers survey the surface. Fortunately, they hadn't caught on to her trick just yet.

"It must be one of those days." The ninja said to herself as she waded through the corridor and followed Corrine through a small shaft. With the high security, it wouldn't be long before the desians found her, "I guess I can tithe myself over."

_"There are alternatives to fighting."_

"Who said that?"

_"Can't I'm afraid...I sense earth mana that doesn't originate from you..."_

"How does he know about Gnome?" Sheena asked herself, especially since she had only recently gotten possession of the ground spirit, "What do you want?"

_"If you would be quiet and not get yourself killed...we can come to a beneficial agreement."_

"Like what?"

_"The best time to kill the Chosen."_

"I'm not after the Chosen...not the one from this world..."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**What's this? Sheena doesn't want to kill Colette? Then what hell is she doing in Sylvarant?**

**That makes no sense!**

**Can Lloyd confide his plan with Colette and comfort her invisible fears? Stay tuned and find out.**

**To figure out what Colette may be going through, look up these two things: The Four Stages of Grief/Loss and Disillusionment, that's about the most that I can say.  
><strong>


	7. Chapter 7

**Copyright: Take what you will from this, but I own nothing...sadly...**

* * *

><p>"A stalemate...again..."<p>

"This is just like the battle of Hericho..."

"You and I remember Hericho very differently Yuan." Kratos panted as he healed the gash in his arm, "Then again, we were on opposing sides."

"You and I were both shaped on those fields." Yuan lifted his sword back into his hand, "Right or Wrong, the Kharlan War made us into who we are. Men capable of making impossible decisions...trading one life for many others, staining our hands with blood that did not need to be shed...I suppose that's why we're both here."

"I didn't hear you oppose Mithos' insanity." Kratos pointed out as he readied to continue this sortie, "You were the fiancee of his sister, if you had said anything than he would have listened to you-"

"A fiancee who failed to protect his sister!" Yuan dashed forward and leapt towards Kratos while spinning his blade around his body as if in a dance. Kratos blocked the attack, but was forced on the defensive as Yuan angrily continued his assault, "And then there's your silence about the truth about everything that led to that hour! Did you believe that Mithos wouldn't believe his own master? The only man who he ever considered a father?"

"By the time I arrived-"

"When you arrived, it was already too late!" Yuan ducked down and slashed at Kratos' chest and his blade met Kratos' shield, "And now two worlds, countless generations and the very balance of life itself has been marred forever by the mistakes of three stupid men! That's why I commissioned the Angelus Project to put an end to it all!"

"I knew Kvar wasn't working alone." Kratos said as he pushed back with a force of strength that surprised his former friend, "That means Anna's death..."

"What happened to your woman was not intended. But if only for poetic justice, I am glad that the two of us are even. Your silence took away my Martel and my project took away your Anna."

"We're finished here." Kratos sheathed his sword as Yuan made no attempt to continue their battle, "I can't allow you to make this situation worse than it already is."

"Then why did you give the Rune Crest to the boy?"

"Curiosity," Kratos admitted, "I want to see how he changes this cycle if he can."

"Just like with Anna?" Kratos lowered his head as Yuan sheathed his weapon, "Why do you wait upon others to act? Especially since you could have stopped him long before this day."

"You're in no better position to accuse me, despite your plans." Kratos stated, "Lloyd will not act as you hope."

"How would you know?" Yuan asked spitefully, "Once he finds out the truth about you, he'll lose any respect that he might've had for your word."

"No, I simply know him better."

"Know him? You didn't even know that he was alive until now and that was only when you came to the Chosen's home under Yggdrassial's orders."

"You've set off a chain of events that you cannot possibly predict Yuan." Kratos stared down his former friend with an emotionless mask, on the inside he cried about how it had come to this, "Don't you realize what will happen when Lloyd comes to each of the seals?"

"Actually...I was counting on it."

* * *

><p>"What's wrong Colette?"<p>

"Do you want me to tell you what you want to hear?" Colette asked Lloyd, "Or the truth?"

"Colette..." Lloyd grabbed Colette's hand to assure her of his support, "Tell me the truth, even if it hurts...even if it's my fault-"

"No!" Colette cried out as she snapped her face away from Lloyd, "It's not you're fault but...Lloyd...I just don't know..."

"Know what?"

"What I'm supposed to do now..." Colette shook as she leaned on the railing, "All my life, I was raised to always be subservient to the goddess...as the chosen, I was told to put the needs of others before my own. That I would one day sacrifice myself to save this world for it's own good. My whole life was built on this and...I was scared about what I would have to face, but happy that it would bring such good in the world."

"But now..."

"Just before I set out on my journey, I find out that it's all a lie." Colette nearly choked on the last word, "The Goddess...the Journey...my fate as a Chosen...all of it is just part of a cycle of suffering...and my whole life is built on that lie!"

"Hey!" Lloyd grabbed her shoulders and pulled her over to face him, "Your life isn't a lie-"

"How can you say that Lloyd?" Tears were freely flowing out of her eyes, it almost made him want to cry, "I know you're just trying to help but...it's true...Colette Brunel...everything about me, about what and who I am...all that was built on Cruxis' lies!"

"So our bond is a lie?"

"No!" Colette wrapped placed her hands over Lloyd's as if afraid that he was about to leave, "That's not what I-"

"So your friendship with Genis and the professor were lies?" Lloyd continued though it was hurting him as much as it hurt her, but she needed to hear this, "What about your family? Is your love for them a lie? What about for the people of Sylvarant?"

"No...that's not what I meant..." Colette lowered her face in shame, "I'm sorry...I just sounded really selfish didn't I?"

"I'd say that it's about time." Lloyd said, using his hand to gently bring Colette's face up to face his, "The Church of Martel may be a lie, the Journey of Regeneration is a lie, but Colette Brunel is not a lie. You're a good person with people who love and want to help you and you love them. Don't change who you are because something wasn't true. That doesn't mean you're heart isn't in the right place or that who you are isn't who you are. Colette...it just means you have to find a way that is true to what you believe."

"Lloyd..." Colette smiled despite her tears, "Then what should I do?"

"You're not alone in this either." Lloyd affirmed to her, "I'm with you every step of the way, and so is Genis, Raine, Kratos, dad and maybe more! Together we'll find a way to stop Cruxis' plans."

"And save Sylverant?" Lloyd nodded as her mood was raised, "And this other world too?"

"Of course." Lloyd said to her, "What exactly are you supposed to do at the seals?"

"According to the Book of Spiritua..." Colette remembered though Lloyd saw that remembering something from her old life was hard, "The Chosen is to face the guardian of the seal, once they succeed, the chosen must pray upon the alter and receive the blessing of Cruxis."

"To increase the Cruxis Crystal's hold over you." Lloyd said to himself, "Colette, when we get the ruins tomorrow, do not let that rune crest fall from your body, understood?

"You gave this to me," Colette held up the rune crest attached to the necklace that she wore, "I'll never take it off."

"Atta girl." Lloyd gave his friend a pat on the shoulder, "Come on, I'll take you to your room."

"Wait..." Colette grabbed Lloyd's arm and spun into his arms with both facing towards the night sky, "Let's stay here...just for a while..."

"Colette..." Lloyd was unsure of this position...Colette's arms were holding his hands onto her stomach while her head rested upon his upper chest...it was something that he had never done but it was pleasant... "Alright..."

* * *

><p>"Where are you?"<p>

"Keep walking." Sheena grumbled as she pulled herself out of the neck deep water of the drain and used a fire seal to dry herself off.

"This better not be a-" Sheena ducked under the swift slash of a heavy spear and went into her stance when she saw her attacker,

"Filthy human!" A desian said while two others flanking him stood by with rapiers,"Take her alive so we'll have something to kill later."

"Bring it on." Sheena pulled out a pair of cards as she jumped onto the desian sentinel's lance and kicked him in his face. She then flipped onto the one of the other desian's shoulder and flipped him onto his back while Sheena landed on her feet.

Though disoriented by Sheena's opening attack, the other desians began to recover as the third fired a fireball. Sheena held out her card to create a barrier which held off the spell. But she was unable to properly counter before a rapier slash from her torso up to the side of her chest. It wasn't a serious injury, but it did cause pain and allowed for the ninja to drop any last reserves that she might have had about killing these people.

She slapped a card onto the man's face, creating a mirror-like image over his eyes that blinded him and allowed Sheena to slap another card onto his face. Said card exploded to create a gushing hole in the desian's body as the other two moved in to attack.

Sheena allowed the spear-desian to graze her shoulder, just so he would be completely open for when she pressed her palm over the man's neck and allowed the card in that palm to send energy from the serpent's seal straight into his air-tubes. As the soldier's face turned a different shade of color, Sheena moved on to the other soldier who slashed across her back. Causing her kimona to fall from her body and blood to flow down her back.

Sheena just smirked, if this guy wasn't an amatuer, that slash would have killed her or worst, paralyzed her for capture.

"Please...don't..." Sheena turned to the now pleading desian and jumped on him, wrapping her legs around his upper back and pressing her thighs around his head.

"Sorry..." Sheena apologized as she twisted her hips and broke the man's spine in at least three different spots, "I can't afford to spare you."

"Sheena!" Corrine jumped out of the water and jumped into Sheena's arms, "Are you alright? I knew I should've helped you!"

"Don't worry, they're just flesh wounds..." Sheena assured her worried summon spirit despite the sting that her injuries gave, "Hey! Where are you?"

"A guard huh?"

"Yeah...three" Sheena answered as she applied an orange gel to her wound, "So hurry up and tell me where you are!"

"You see a lever?" Sheena saw a lever near where the guard was originally sitting, "Pull it."

"Why?"

"You're looking for Efreet...aren't you?"

"How does he..." Seeing no other choice, Sheena pulled the lever and watched a pair of chains rise out of the pool of lava, "Yeah, I am looking for Efreet. Where is he?"

"Sealed, dormant until the Chosen comes." The voice said as a smoked figure was pulled out of the pool, "Why little girl?"

"Girl?" Sheena asked in outrage and immediately turned away upon seeing that this man was completely unclothed, "Do you know how many I've killed to come to this point?"

"And you've attained the pact of the Summon Spirit Gnome." "But it takes more than attainment to mark a pact maker, you have to have their loyalty and respect as well...traveling through a foreign world is not a popular tactic of endearment-"

"I'm not here to impress anyone!" Sheena shouted at the chained prisoner, "I just watched the supposed savior of my world stand by while the new King ordered the death my people! The leader of the attack ravaged one of my only friends before feeding her to his "pet". He would've done the same to me if it wasn't for the renegades..."

"You have been on the run for a long time." The figure said from above the molten lake, "As I said...release me...when the time comes, I can help you form a pact with Efreet."

"How could you help me?"

"Because I once held a pact with him." The man explained, "That pact was broken when the Lord of Cruxis placed this seal upon my body, forcing me to break my vow..."

"So if I take that out, what will happen?"

"I will be released." As the man looked like he was about to say more, he saw a card get thrown onto the object attached to his chest, "That didn't take long."

"We can help each other..." Sheena said as the card glow before exploding, cracking the crystal object and letting pieces and chunks fall into the molten lake, "Now what?"

"Just give me a moment..."

* * *

><p>"Are you sure that your report is accurate, Kratos?"<p>

"I am, Lord Yggdrassial." Yggradrassial heard his former teacher report, "Apparently, a masterful illusionist disguised himself as Yuan to fool Forcystus into killing the Chosen."

"That would mean that Forcystus was deceived by a mere trick..." Yggdrassial concluded while studying his teacher's expressions, "As loyal and dedicated a grand cardinal that he is...I highly doubt that..."

"I am only relaying-"

"Are you lying to me Kratos?" Mithos asked as Kratos doubled over while holding his head in emotional agony, "I know for certain that Yuan ordered Forcystus to attack the Chosen. If so, then that would mean that you're lying to me...I don't like being lied to."

"I am only relaying-"

"What you know, I can see that." Mithos stated as he released Kratos from his torment. It was times like this when he strongly regretted placing the Origin Seal within Kratos, "By the way, someone from the other world is in Sylvarant. When you get to the Trient Ruins, make sure that she doesn't interfere...whatever it takes."

"Understood." Kratos agreed, "What about Theron?"

"You need not concern yourself with him." Yggdrassial stated to Kratos, "Just ensure that the Chosen stays on her path and releases the seal. Understood, Kratos?"

"Of course...Mithos."

"Good, I thought that we would have a problem." Yggdrassial knew that there already was a problem, "Oh...and don't hesitate to bring the Angelus bearer to Forcystus if he tries to get in our way."

"To be punished for the cardinal's injury?"

"I have to repay Forcystus somehow..." Yggdrassial smirked as he saw Kratos cringe regretfully, "I've already sent Asbel and Farah to speak with the Chosen of Tethe'alla in case this situation grows worse."

"Asbel? Farah?" Now he had his attention, "Is it not Sylvarant's turn to become dominant in the cycle?"

"It is." Yggdrassial was slowly getting his point across without uttering a single word, "But once the girl is ready to be Martel's vessel, there won't be any need for either world. We Seraphim and our chosen angels from the ages will ascend into Derris Kharlan and go forth to create a new world."

"I...see..." Without a single word, Kratos' newborn rebellion was slain as soon as it was born, "With your leave, Mithos..."

"Very well, Kratos...Her will be done."

"Her will...be done..."

"They still see me as a child sister..." Yggdrassial sadly mused, "They'll never respect me as they should...and that is why they'll always be under my control."

"They've lied to my face for centuries..." Mithos Yggdrassial said while yawning, "Unaware that they're ignorance will only ensure that they're lives will be made that much worst. They treat me like some dark overlord wanting nothing more than to waste everything in my path and leave nothing left."

"But as you said sister," Mithos lied back against his throne, smiling as the threads of fate remained in his control, "If you can't convince them of what you are...give them what they want. They'll regret it soon enough..."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**As the chosen's party nears the ruins of trient, what will Lloyd decide to do to free Colette from her burden? Can this newly freed prisoner be trusted or will Sheena have to stay on her guard? What is Yggdrassial planning to counter the disturbances in his grand scheme?  
><strong>

**This chapter's been a long time in the making because I myself wasn't too sure about what to have in it. So I settled for stuff that would either directly tie into the first dungeon or into the overarching conflict. Overall, I think it turned out alright.  
><strong>

**Agree? Disagree? Suggestions? Post in your reviews and enjoy.  
><strong>


	8. Chapter 8

**Copyright: I own nothing.**

* * *

><p>"Colette..." Raine called from outside before opening the door, "It's time for us to...<p>

"Professor..." Lloyd felt his blood rush to his face due to Raine's subdued shock from when she saw Lloyd and Colette in the same bed with Colette wrapped around Lloyd, "It's not what it..."

"Figures..." Raine quietly stated while exhaling, "Lloyd...I was honestly wondering why this didn't happen earlier-"

"Can you be keep it down...she's still asleep..."

"Lloyd..." Raine rubbed her hand over her face, "I trust you...but it's close to dawn, we need to get to the ruins before the heat picks up."

"Just five minutes?" Lloyd asked, "Please?"

"Alright..." Raine conceeded, "I'll tell Genis and Kratos that you were going through your morning exercise."

"Thanks professor." Raine nodded as she slowly closed the door behind her while Lloyd felt Collete's face nuzzle his shoulder, "You...you were awake?"

"I wanted to stay with you for a while..." Colette replied as she opened her eyes, "We haven't done this since we were kids..."

"I remember that night...You snuck out to my house one night just before it stormed. Was it...four..three years ago?"

"Three years...five months...and twenty days..." Colette numbered off, "It...it was when I was told what would happen to me..."

"They told you that you would die." Colette nodded as Lloyd fought down a surge of anger, "I remember, it was the only time that you ever yelled at me. I was asking what was wrong and why you were crying. Then you told me to be quiet and then cried as you apologized...I was...kind of confused then..."

"I was scared Lloyd." Colette admitted, "I didn't want to die...and didn't want to go home...I hated my life and myself for being so selfish...I just couldn't handle it...not then."

"But there's no need now." Lloyd reminded her, "Now we'll find our own way, a way to save the worlds without having you die. And we'll make Cruxis pay for everything that they've done to Sylvarant."

"What about the seal? How will I face Remiel? What about the people who want their Chosen?"

"You won't face him alone." Lloyd reminded his angel, "Professor Sage will be there, Genis, Noishe, and me. Just don't take off the-"

"I won't," Colette held her hand over the pendent, "Even if I die...I'll never take this off."

"And since I'm here...It won't come to that, I promise."

"I know...Alright! Let's wake up!"

"We are awake..."

"I know...But no one else knows that we're awake."

"Guess not..."

* * *

><p>A guardian stood at attention before his master.<p>

He had lost care and meaning in keeping up with how long he had served the Lord of Derris Kharlan or how long he had lived in the castle of Vinhelm.

All that mattered was the will of Yggdrassial.

Therefore, his face betrayed neither annoyance as the child to his right was nor fear as the woman to his left. And he certainly did not exhibit excessive pride and pompous arrogance as the current guardian of the Chosen was. The guardian watched him gracefully land after being teleported to his master's throne and stand erect as though he himself were the Lord of Cruxis.

"You summoned me Lord Yggdrassial?"

"Yes," The Lord of Cruxis said to the angel before addressing him and all others who had come, "My four Arc-Angels: Remiel; Peliel; Kutiel; and Camael. You have served me faithfully for the past four thousand years. The time has now come for the vassel of Martel to take the first step in her journey."

"Of course, Lord Yggdrassial." Remiel produly declared, "With the first seal, she shall become more alike to us. Until finally she becomes a vassal fit for the goddess."

"If I may inquire..." Peliel said hesitantly, Yggdrassial nodded, allowing the blue haired angel to continue, "Why have all four of us been summoned? It is Remiel's turn to oversee the Chosen of this cycle in order to ensure the transfer of mana from Tethe'alla to Sylverant. Why are all four of us here?"

"Because there is a disturbance." Yggdrasial replied as Peliel lowered her head, "Someone amongst my Seraphim is acting against me. They seek to betray our goal for a New Age. I will require the four of you to do your part in dealing with them."

"What must we do?"

"The Chosen has already left for the Triet Ruins, Remiel." Yggdrassial said to the proud Arc-Angel, "Go there and await the Chosen. Ensure that this is nothing more than an overestimation."

"I shall my lord." Remiel answered, giving an arrogant glance across to Camael as he did. The fool was clearly planning to use the Chosen to advance his own position, not that he stood a chance.

"If the Chosen has indeed diverted from her path." Yggdrasial added, "You have my permission to do whatever is necessary to get her back on track. After all, she is supposed to be a good girl."

"As you wish...Lord Yggdrassial." Remiel bowed while smiling as a portal of mana appeared around him and siphoned him out of Yggdrassial's throneroom. Leaving only three of the Arc-angels present.

"You did not tell him everything." Camael said, knowing from his master's unsurprise that he had chosen the right words to say, "You do not know yourself, my lord?"

"Admittingly, I don't." Yggdrassial confessed to the tall Camael with flowing black hair, "One of the Grand Cardinal's encountered the Chosen's primary protector. It is clear that the boy has the Angelus Crystal."

"The Angelus Crystal?" Kutiel repeated in confusion, "I thought it was lost when Kratos' whore-"

"Isn't it obvious?" Yggdrassial asked the child-like orange haired Kutiel, "This protector is Kratos' long-lost son...an inheritor of that which his mother stole. But he's still just a human, how could possibly harness it's power?"

"It's not a question of how, but when." Camael finished, "He utilized this power against Forcystus and defeated him in combat."

"What concern is this to us-" Kutiel was cut off when he felt a pulse of gravitational mana form a ring around him and crush his body from all sides, "Lord...Lord Yggdrassial..."

"Do not question me, Kutiel." Yggdrassial waved his hand and dispelled the Gravity Well, leaving Kutiel to stand on his shaken feet gasping for breath, "He's found a way to unlock it's power and from a reliable source, he may be a hinderance to the Chosen's path."

"How so?"

"He gave the Chosen a Rune Crest." Peliel gasped in alarm, "As long as she wears it when she activates the seal...her soul and heart will remain intact...as will her will and humanity. While still gaining the divine power of Cruxis to use as she wills."

"That will ruin the entire cycle..." Camael realized, "And by the time she comes to the Tower..."

"She'll be more powerful than any of you." Yggdrassial said as he stood up from his throne and walked amongst the three of them, "If Remiel should fail, you will await at each of the four seals and do whatever you must to stop the Chosen."

"Even if we must kill her-"

"NO!" Camael did not stir from the wrathful voice of his master. Kutiel was already on his knees while Peliel stood in fear of what Yggdrassial's retribution would bring. Instead, Camael saw his master calm himself, "She is still the Chosen...we shall allow the goddess to decide that...but you are allowed to cripple, maim or seriously injure her to death's door if you have to. Once the key crest is removed and destroyed, there won't be any way for her to get another one. If you must remove it later in her journey so be it, her humanity will give way to the will of the goddess...it is the key crest that above all else must be destroyed."

"What about this protector and her companions?"

"Kill them." Yggdrassial said to Peliel, "They are a detracting influence on her obedience and faith. Recover the protector's Angelus Crystal if you are able, but kill the protector."

"And Kratos?"

"Ah...Kratos..." Camael saw the smirk on his lord's face, Camael now realized who the traitor was, "Leave him to me...dismissed."

"Yes my lord." Peliel was teleported from the throneroom along with Kutiel as Camael knelt before his master.

"What is it Camael?"

"I would beg a question or two...Mithos..."

"Very well, old friend." Yggdrassial consented, "Speak your questions."

"If I might observe, you spoke to us as though Remiel had already failed."

"In all honesty, I really hope that he does." Mithos confessed to Camael who also smirked at the thought, "The fool believes that he can rise above his set place and become a Seraph. You have no idea about how much I regret even making him an Arc-Angel."

"Then why not kill him?" Camael inquired as Mithos laughed, "Or command me?"

"Why bother?" Mithos continued to laugh, his voice echoed through Vinhelm as the laughing dogs of old, "It would just be a waste of time. Let someone else dirty their hands and besides..."

"Besides what?"

"I'm rather enjoying this...disturbance." Mithos said, his laugh subdued to a joyful smile, "I haven't had a real adventure in four thousand years. This might be exactly what I needed."

* * *

><p>"This is strange."<p>

"What?"

"I was expecting more resistance." Kratos said to the curious Genis, "The entire ruins seem...quiet."

"Nothing out of the ordinary." Raine figured after finally relaxing out of her "mania ruin mode", "These are ruins after all...at worst it means that we'll be in more trouble when we come deeper into the ruins."

"The Professor has a point." Lloyd agreed, "Who you expect to see in a ruin in the middle of the desert?"

"Treasure hunters?" Colette offered, causing Lloyd and Genis to lightly laugh, "Wouldn't ruins have treasure in them? Gold?"

"Or adventurers who are looking for a thrill..." Raine suggested casually, "Maybe the fanfare about the Chosen's Journey caused them to delay their plans."

"What fanfare?"

"Ever since the last chosen was killed during her journey, the people have prayed to the heavens for a new chosen to come soon." Kratos explained, "Once word is out that the Chosen has begun her journey, the people will rejoice...quietly in some areas such as Triet, but they will rejoice for the coming renewal."

"Renewal..." Colette said to herself, "What is it Genis?"

"Nothing..." Genis lied as Lloyd saw the young elf's eyes already observing Colette, "You just seem...different somehow."

"How's Colette different?"

"Well..." Genis thought for a moment while Lloyd eyed his friend, "I haven't heard you say sorry since we left Dirk's house, that's one of your favorite words, right?"

"Oh..." Colette glanced to Lloyd for a second and answered happily, "Why be sorry when there's nothing to be sorry for? Otherwise, it just becomes a bad habit..."

"Yeah, guess you're right." Genis replied, "It was silly anyway..."

"Lloyd, if I could borrow you and Kratos for a moment." Raine asked, "I spotted something with my elven eyes."

"Better you than me brother."

"Genis..." Lloyd could tell from Raine's tone as to why Genis was glad that it wasn't him, "Noishe, stay with them alright?"

"We're not going to be far from the Chosen-" Kratos rolled his eyes from Lloyd's accusing face, "From Colette, do not worry."

"Have fun!"

"I will," Lloyd replied to Colette as he and Kratos followed Raine through an apparent field of lightly covered debris, "So you really can see farther than humans?"

"Not farther, I can just pick out small details more easily," Raine clarified as she motioned for the two of them to get behind cover, "Like...a desian..."

"Where did he come from?" Lloyd asked as he spotted the desian who crawled along the ground, "Why didn't you say this before?"

"I didn't want to scare Genis and Colette," Raine explained, "Anyway, it's just one man right now...I didn't want to frighten them unreasonably."

"Where there's one, there are sure to be more nearby." Kratos figured, "Notice anything about him?"

"He's hurt..." Raine replied, pointing out how the desian was holding himself with one arm while leaving a thin trail of blood, "Badly."

"Someone attacked the desians? About time..."

"I wouldn't celebrate yet Lloyd." Raine lightly rebuked, "Whoever did this, they may be trying to attack Colette."

"Maybe...Kratos...stay on look-out for any more, alright?"

"Very well." The Mercenary agreed, "Are you sure that you can do what needs to be done?"

"Yeah..." Lloyd answered without hesitation, "Professor."

"Understood." Raine agreed as she and Lloyd moved through the debris to close in on the desian, "What will you do?"

"I have no idea," Lloyd admitted as he arrived first to the desian and knelt down to the man, "Hi there, you look like you're having a bad day-"

"Obviously!" The desian yelled as he managed to place his back against a piece of stone and growled when he saw Lloyd, "Get away from me...filthy human..."

"His wounds are serious," Raine noticed after checking over the desian, "But I should be able to patch them up-"

"Not yet," Lloyd said to Raine while putting his face up to the desian's, "If you want my friend to heal you, you'll tell me what happened you."

"Damn you! Human!" The desian spat in Lloyd's face before noticing Raine, "You too? You're with him?"

"Remember what I said?" Lloyd asked while holding up his sword stabbing it into the desian's wound, "If you want to die, that's on you...but I promise that it won't end quickly..."

"Lloyd..."

"Lloyd...Lloyd Irving?" The desian repeated, "You're the one who fought Forcystus...your days are numbered."

"I'm human, what do you expect?" Lloyd asked again while twisting the sword and widening the wound that the blade was sticking into, "And your's will be numbered further down if you don't talk."

"Alright!" The desian cried as Lloyd pulled out the sword, "We were attacked...an outlandish woman attacked us...she used magic infused within cards and broke into the base. We tried to find her...but she eluded most of us and those who did find her were found dead."

"So why are you out here?"

"I was to deliver a message to Lord Magnius..." The desian answered Raine, "But I was..."

"Sealed..." Raine observed, placing her hand next to the desian's injury, "His mana signature is being blocked by this wound to his rib cage...was this the woman?"

"No...it was one of ours." The desian answered, "He...took my sword and told me that I could crawl away in gratitude for it...and then I came out here..."

"He doesn't know anything else." Raine figured as she turned to the focused Lloyd, "Lloyd..."

"Just one more question-"

"Lloyd!" Raine shouted, breaking him out of his glare, "Don't become like them..."

"Alright..." Lloyd concented, pulling back his arm and allowing Raine to cast First Aid on the injured desian, "Now then, you owe us your life. Answer just a few more questions for us."

"Alright..." The desian answered if he stood upon his feet hesitantly and tiredly, "If I answer...will you let me go?"

"Yeah," Lloyd answered when he also stood up, "Who are the three cardinals? You mentioned Forcystus and Magnius...who are the others? And whose Yggdrassial?"

"Yggdrassial..." The desian said to himself, "The other cardinals are Kvar, Rodyle and Pronyma..."

"Where are they stationed?"

"I don't know about Rodyle...his ranch is only known to the higher ranks," The desian fearfully reported, glancing from Lloyd to Raine, "Pronyma is the leader of the other cardinals...but she comes to them, my group only saw her in passing...Kvar is located close to Luin...Magnius is north of Palmacosta...and Forcystus...well you know that one."

"Whatever...whose Yggdrassial?"

"I don't know for certain." The desian went on, "I heard that he was the overlord of our organization, the one who chooses the new cardinal when the old man dies or is disgraced. But it's only a rumor and I don't know anything else...please...I just wanted to get back at you humans!"

"For what?" Raine asked when the desian wiped tears from his eyes, "You're a half-elf...aren't you?"

"What's it to you!" The desian shouted, "Filthy traitor...I don't want your pity!"

"Then leave it!" Lloyd shouted while holding up his blade, "The ocean's south of here, you'll make it if you run."

"Fine..." The desian said as he turned and started running haphazardly, even tripping over a stone in the ruins.

"Ha! Look at him run!" Lloyd laughed, "Come on...let's back to the others."

"Agreed..." Raine said as she noticed that desian stop and pick something up from the debris, "He stopped...what is he holding-" Raine felt the empty sleeve of her jacket blow with the gust that was created from Lloyd slashing his blade as he turned and sending a faint mana slash in the desian's direction that practically blew down the desian while leaving a swath in the ground.

"You fool!" Lloyd shouted as he ran over to his latest victim and stood in front of him, his arm shaking with remorse at what he had done to the man, "Why didn't you just run..."

"Lloyd..." Raine walked to Lloyd's side and saw the young man's mangled body inside the swatch the Lloyd had cut. It was...terrible...the corpse didn't even look human with all of the blood and the distortion that had been created, "Lloyd! Why did you do that?"

"He was going to attack you professor!" Lloyd used his sword to point to a crossbow that had been broken in the attack, "We spared and saved his life, gave him a chance to flee and then he turns around and tries to shoot you in the back...he deserved it."

"That doesn't make what you did right!"

"Those bastards have oppressed people all over Sylvarant." Lloyd shouted with rising anger, "He was lucky that I even gave him a chance, but I'm going to let you suffer any more by being careless and naive. They are the enemy, professor."

"I know that..." Raine said, knowing that Lloyd was right. But it pained her to see this young man killed by another young man...did he have a family? Does he have a mother will now wait for a son who would never return? "But you didn't have to...kill him..."

"Maybe not," Lloyd replied bitterly yet regretfully, "Least now, he can't report back to anyone whose left."

"If anyone is left." Kratos added in while standing on a piece of debrise, "As ruthless as your methods were, at least you kept your guard up. Though, I wouldn't have allowed him to flee in the first place."

"Fine, you're both right." Raine conceded reluctantly as she gave a last glance at the corpse of the desian, "But try not to use so much mana next time Lloyd. It leaves a mess and it'll tire you out unnecessarily."

"Yes, ma'am."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**INCOMING MAJOR DIVERGENCE! In the next chapter, of course.  
><strong>

**Behold Lloyd's first truly chaotic action in the story. Or is it chaotic at all? You decide. It's on the border as far as I'm concerned, not to mention his interrogation methods.  
><strong>

**Raine's response came more from shock at Lloyd's character and his "ruthless" actions as well as a bit of pity and remorse due to something that she and that desian have in common.  
><strong>

**As you can see, Yggdrassial has his bases covered for future seals if Remiel fails. Will Remiel fail? How will Colette respond when directly confronted by this messenger of Cruxis? What are the intentions of Sheena and her new companion? Will Kyros ever find another adequate sword?  
><strong>


	9. Chapter 9

**Copyright: I own nothing**

* * *

><p>"What happened?"<p>

"We found a straggling desian..."

"Straggler?" Genis asked, a shadow from the attack in Iselia present on his face, "Was he alone?"

"No, he was a survivor from his unit." Lloyd assured the young elf, "A group of desians have camped out in this area and were attacked by a woman and a traitor in their ranks. The messenger barely escaped alive..."

"Lloyd...persuaded him to speak about the situation." Raine went on, "But when we let him go...he tried to get the drop on me and..."

"I had to kill him," Lloyd finished, hanging his head when Colette nodded sadly, "Wish there was another way...but there wasn't..."

"What are you apologizing for?" Genis asked, "They're desians, who cares if they die."

"Genis... nobody ever deserves to die-"

"Did you forget about Iselia? About the Mayor? About Raine or Marble-" Genis stopped, realizing that his words weren't helping, "Sorry...I'm just not...as strong as you are..."

"Strong?" Colette inquired, "What do you mean?"

"I can't forgive them for what happened..." Genis admitted with clenched hands, "I know that it's not right but...every time I think about them, I just want them to die. Die for all of the people that they've hurt, killed and to die in a way that pays them back for all of the injustices that they've done...I know that it won't bring anyone who died back...but I just can't forget..."

"There's a difference between forgiving and forgetting." Kratos consoled the young elf, "But in times of conflict, the line between both can be muddled. Hard decisions will have to made for our own survival..."

"Right...wonder what's in there?"

"Plenty." Kratos answered, bringing the group's attention to the entrance to the Ruins, "Even without the desians and their opponents, the temple is guarded with various traps designed to puzzle anyone who enter without initiation into the angelic language or this temple's history. Then there are the creatures who will be guarding the seal."

"Since this is the Fire Seal..." Lloyd thought out loud, "Hey Genis, do you know a lot of water spells?"

"A few, why?"

"I figured that we should know what we have that can capitalize on their weaknesses," Lloyd explained as Raine raised an eyebrow, "What? Isn't fire weak against water? Doesn't that still work with magic?"

"Technically yes," Raine agreed, "But Genis' spells may not be strong enough to face tougher opponents without support."

"Goes without saying-" Genis was stopped when his sister slapped the top of his head, "Ow! What was that for?"

"Sarcasm doesn't suit you Genis."

"But we will also need to strengthen our defense." Kratos pointed out, "How many defensive skills and spells do you all know?"

"Uh-"

"Based on my observations, none." Kratos answered for Lloyd, "Otherwise, Raine wouldn't have lost her arm in Iselia-"

"Hey! Don't talk about my sister like that-"

"Harsh as he sounds, he's telling the truth." Raine agreed, moving her hand over the stump that used to be her right arm, "We need to learn to protect ourselves or else you'll all end up like I have."

"So how will we do that?"

"I happen to know these skills myself," Kratos explained, "If you'll allow me a few hours to teach you, these aren't at all hard to learn."

* * *

><p>"Please..." The wounded desian begged while a quiet figure marched towards her, "I beg of you...don't take advantage of me!"<p>

"Why would I?" The Prisoner asked as he kicked the desian's head with enough force to knock off the unconscious soldier's helmet, "A woman? These desians employ women in their ranks?"

"Got something against women there?" Sheena asked while she held another desian in a death-grip that slowly drained him of air before his face turned completely blue and he fell still, "Cause one saved your life."

"I don't have a problem with women who can handle themselves." The Prisoner answered while he rummaged through the desian's gear, "I have a problem with women who are recruited for the sake of it and then become a burden themselves."

"Guess we agree on that." Sheena ducked when an unsheathed sword flew past her and she caught it with her left hand before its point hit Corrine, "Watch where you throw those!"

"Thanks Sheena!"

"Anytime Corrine..."

"They call this a sword?" The Prisoner asked as he tossed aside another sword, hitting another fallen desian who gasped in pain and then fell silent while blood drained from his open mouth, "Quality has taken a back seat of late."

"You're in Sylvarant." Sheena explained, "The mana here is limited compared to my world, so the people here don't have access to many resources."

"This must be the brat's doing..." The Prisoner figured when he stood up, "You know, it really is people like him and these "desians" that damage the sympathetic plight of the half-elves."

"Huh?" Sheena was starting to get a bad feeling from this released prisoner, "Got a problem with half-elves?"

"Just the one's who've had me here enduring a fate worse than death." The Prisoner answered, "Life is cruel, why stand still and cry that it is so? Then again, the brat is doing something."

"So you know about Yggdrassial?"

"Know about him?" The Prisoner chuckled, "He put me here in the first place. Punishment for my unforgivable sin."

"Glad that I got you out then," Sheena answered when another question came to mind, "What did you do?"

"Does it matter?" The Prisoner asked, "The desian's had an armory here somewhere, let's find it."

"Picky about your clothes now?"

"I'm actually thankful that I have any at all." If only for modesty's sake, Sheena agreed...even though the brief view was decent, "All I need is an adequate sword, maybe their commanding officer has one."

"What about that sword on your belt?"

"A smart warrior always has a spare when his previous weapon breaks."

"Guess that's smart," Sheena agreed, "Do you know how long that they've been here?"

"I've been boiling alive inside of a well of magma," The Prisoner pointed out, "What makes you think that I know that?"

"Just asking." A put-off Sheena shot back, "Then, you'll take me to Efreet."

"Lot of good that it'll do you." The Prisoner stated, "You said so yourself, the brat's cycle has this world in the pits. Which means that the Summon Spirits are inactive until this world's Chosen opens their seals."

"So we're supposed to wait until then? Hold on...these desians are waiting for the Chosen!"

"There they are!" The two intruders looked down the hallway to see a band of desians running towards them, "Filthy humans!" The band of half a dozen desians charged with swords brandished, unaware of their sealed fates. The first two were cut down by a swift slash from the Intruder, the middle two were kicked into the hallway walls where the ninja from Mizuho dealt a single pointed chop into their necks that caused their heads to pale before they gasped for air and died.

The last two turned around and fled to avoid the fates of their fellows.

"Where did these fools learn to fight?"

"Learn?" Sheena asked stupendously, "That's the problem, most of them are just here for numbers. Pick them off in small groups and they're easy."

"You've explored these ruins for a while? Then you're leading for now...what is your name?"

"Now you ask?" Sheena asked humorously, though the humor flew over the man's head, "It's Sheena, Sheena of Mizuho."

"And I am Kyros Theron." The prisoner introduced himself, "Now lead, I'll follow."

* * *

><p>"Adequate." Kratos sheathed his sword while Lloyd wiped off his brow, "I believe that we've spent enough time, you'll have to practice on your own."<p>

"Fair enough," Lloyd agreed, while the session lasted less than an hour, the ease of the spell allowed the surprisingly quick Lloyd to get the hang of the Guardian ability, "Besides, it sounds like we could become really creative with this skill."

"How so?"

"Because it takes minimal mana to even use." Lloyd explained to an intrigued and impressed Raine, "So...we could conjoin them with other skills and spells to both block an enemy and still attack them?"

"An odd idea...and very risky," Raine noted, "But it would be useful."

"Just don't risk your life to test a theory, Lloyd." Kratos sternly warned, "Shall we proceed, Colette?"

"Of course!" Colette said, becoming a little nervous under an inspecting look from Raine, "What?"

"I never asked earlier, but where did you get that necklace?"

"This?" Colette held her pendant in front of the awed Professor, "Lloyd gave it to me."

"A Rune Crest..." Raine said to herself, "It looks remarkably well-made, did you do this by yourself Lloyd?"

"I had help from my dad."

"Don't be modest Lloyd, you worked hard on this too."

"Thanks Colette, wonder how many desians are in there?"

* * *

><p>"Don't let up men!" The Desian captain shouted amidst the chaos, "Keep them away from the chamber!"<p>

"Nice try, but no," Kyros said while he parried a desian soldier and stabbed his blade through the man's neck, "Impel!" A pulse of mana flared forward from Kyros' blade, impacting a desian immediately behind his victim and causing the man to slam into the ground face first.

"Is that a sealing skill?" Sheena slapped a charm onto a spearman and slapped it, causing the desian fly into a wall, "Looks like you've got some moves, Kyros."

"I've had my share of travels and trials." Kyros said before released the grip on his still lodged sword and threw both hands out before an incoming fireball, "Repel!" Mana flared in front of the man, creating a triangular barrier that the fireball impacted on as the force of the blast knocked Kyros down.

"You alright?" Sheena flipped over to Kyros and threw a Life Seal onto the man, "Here!"

"Thanks, still a little rusty," Kyros said in gratitude as he stood up and pointed an open palm at the desian mage that had attacked him, "Repress!" Mana flared out of the palm and hit the man's staff, creating a series of small tendrils that wrapped around the man's arms before they faded into his skin.

"Well? What are you waiting for?" The captain demanded of the mage, whose arms bleed everytime he attempted to summon mana until he collapsed onto the floor in pain, "What did you do to him?"

"Magic tends to let you cheat a great deal..." Kyros stated as he charged at the captain, who attempted to use the disabled mage as a shield. Kyros stabbed his sword through the man's chest and managed to glance the captain before letting go of the sword's handle while he slapped it, "I don't like that." He caught the man's overhand slash and held the captain in place as an unseeable burst of mana fired out of blade embedded through the mage and blasted off the man's legs.

"You won't get away with this human!"

"Actually, no one else will remember this so...yes I will." Kyros answered as he pressed his boot down on the captain's head, raised up and slammed down, causing the man's skull to break upon the hard floor and spill out it's contents, "Shame...isn't it?"

"Lets see...the Seal Chamber is in this direction..." Sheena recalled, unaffected by the gasping reach of her last victim, "And then there's this chamber..."

"It's useless to us right now."

"Still nice to know where it is for afterwards."

"You sure you want to wait until then?" Theron asked while he drew out the sword from the mage's body and also collected the captain's sword, "This is all part of the brat's cycle..."

"Then how else will we awaken Efreet?"

"Anyway where the brat doesn't win."

"Then give them a break!" Sheena shouted, causing Theron to raise his brow with interest, "This Chosen that's coming up...somethings supposed to be different about her. I'm not sure what, but I say we wait and find out."

"Fine."

* * *

><p>"What's wrong sis?" Walking through the corridors of the Triet Ruins, Genis noticed how tame his sister was acting. Her mania mood had ended somewhat quicker than usual, "We're in the ruins of Triet! What was this place?"<p>

"A kingdom from the Great Mana War," Raine answered, "Back then, the kingdoms were city-states that warred with one another dominance and honor. It's theorized that these kingdoms had some sort of competition amongst their princes and generals. Whatever this contest was, the winner's kingdom became ruler of the others for a set period of time."

"Then what happened to Triet?

"Legend has it that it was destroyed." Kratos added, "According to that legend, Triet had over-stayed their stay in the seat of lordship and refused others a chance to pass on that title. So the General and Prince of a kingdom called Maxwell gathered an alliance and marched on Treit, killed its kings and left the city abandoned. Forever standing as an example to those who violated the honor of the land."

"It must've been hard to defeat," Lloyd commented, "This place is still relatively intact even after thousands of years. If it lasts this long against the effects of time, then how strong was the alliance that defeated it?"

"That is something that we may never know," Raine lamented, "Records and evidence concerning the Kingdom of Maxwell or it's leader or it's allies were lost during the war."

"And so history is written by the winner," Genis heard Lloyd say out loud, "What?"

"You mean by whoever destroyed Maxwell and it's allies?"

"That has to be it, right?" Lloyd asked, "How better to defeat your enemy than to erase all evidence that they ever existed? Then generations descended from that kingdom will never know any different than what the victor told them."

"A valid speculation Lloyd..." Raine agreed before muttering to herself, "He's different from before..."

"Is it that necklace?" Genis asked, having noted his sisters subtle suspicion of Lloyd since Iselia, "What did you call it? A Rune Cres...Rune Crest..."

"A Rune Crest is a specialized key crest," Raine explained to her brother, "It's a legendary item, but it's based on the design for an advanced exspheres that allowed a user to more safely control high-level exspheres."

"Alright?" Genis knew about the legends, but how would Lloyd have made one if that necklace really is a Rune Crest? Furthermore, why give it to someone whose about to become an angel? "But Colette doesn't have an exsphere at all. So why would Lloyd give Colette a key crest?"

"Maybe he doesn't know that it is a key crest." Raine speculated, "Or maybe he figured that Colette would eventually come across one during her journey and made it so that she could safely use it."

"But why would she need an exsphere at all?" Genis asked, taking his sister's que to be careful and not let Lloyd hear them, "I thought angels could use advanced mana powers without an exsphere..."

"Perhaps Lloyd isn't aware of this."

"Guys?" Lloyd asked, bringing attention to Genis as to how far ahead he and Colette were, "Everything alright back there?"

"We're fine Lloyd!" Genis shouted as he ran to catch up while Raine took her time, "But...uh...have you ever heard of a Rune Crest?"

"Rune Crest?" Lloyd repeated to himself, "What about it?"

"So you didn't know...forget it, let's just keep going-"

"Avalanche!" An overhead voice shouted, causing the ruins to shake. The ceiling cracked and gave way, allowing a cascade of debris and rock to fall upon the heroes. Lloyd pushed Colette forward before he leapt back to Kratos who erected a guardian shield in conjuction with Raine and Genis' barriers.

"Colette!" Lloyd shouted once the debris stopped falling,

"Lloyd!" Colette called from the other side, allowing the group to sign in relief, "I'm alright! What about all of you?"

"We're fine..." Raine answered while she inspected the wall that stood before them, "But we'll have to find another way around to the chamber."

"Go on ahead and release the seal!"

"What?" Raine couldn't believe that Lloyd was saying this, "Lloyd, don't be foolish! How do you know that nothing else is between Colette and the Seal?"

"I don't...but if we make her wait her for us then the desians in the temple will find and kill her."

"You raise a good point," Raine admitted, though Genis saw suspicion in Raine's eyes, "Just be careful Colette, we'll do what we can here."

"Alright..." A worried Colette called out, "You'll be there though, right?"

"Of course we will!" Lloyd cried out, "I promise."

"How sweet..." Genis turned to where a desian with an ornate helmet and shoulder pads dropped from the ceiling, surrounded by a group of similarly armed desians, "So you're the ones who injured Forcystus?"

"In the flesh." Genis answered, "Nervous or something?"

"That means the intruders aren't with them-"

"Quiet!" The apparent leader said to his comrade, "Surrender your exsphere boy and we'll allow your friends to live."

"What about Lloyd?"

"He assaulted a Grand Cardinal, young kinsman," The leader answered Genis, "Do you really believe that we'll let him get away with that?"

"I honestly don't care if you try."

* * *

><p>"I hope everyone is alright..." Colette said to herself as the sounds of battle grew more faded the further into the chamber she walked, "I don't know if I can do this...alone..."<p>

"Colette!" Colette heard apart of herself reprimand her, "Stop being afraid! You have to release this seal!"

"But why?" Colette asked, "The only reason I was doing that was as the Chosen. I'm not that person anymore."

"Says who?"

"Says me! The Chosen is a lie! I won't be part of that anymore!"

"You may reject being the pawn of another, but don't let someone else's lies compromise who you are! Is that any better than giving in? Has your love for your father and grandmother changed?"

"No..."

"Has your love for your friends changed?"

"No..."

"Lloyd?"

"Yes..." Colette confessed, "Now that I know the truth, I want to put my hand into his and live out our lives together. As the Chosen of Mana, I couldn't risk leaving him hurt after I sacrificed myself. But now, I don't have to do that and I can walk side by side with Lloyd to find another way!"

"Good Colette." Colette felt a smile grow on her face when she finally approached a hall with stairs leading up to the alter in the center, "Now come on, you have a seal to release."

"Right..." Colette decided, but stopped when she felt her birthday pendant begin to glow, "Lloyd's necklace...what's...going on?"

"You'll understand at the alter." Deciding to listen to herself, Colette walked up the alter and knelt down to pray. She chanted words that she had memorized since she was a child, but she didn't pray to a goddess that she knew to be false, but simply prayed. Prayed for Lloyd, prayed for Genis, Raine, Kratos, her family, those who sought to oppress or kill her, for Cruxis, and finally, someone who she had prayed for since she was a child.

Herself.

"It is done," Colette didn't blink as a pillar of light beamed down into the chamber with a small orb of brighter light descending through it before it grew more bright and sent out a blinding flash. When the flash was gone, Colette was standing before a winged man in green robes, "Remiel."

"Chosen of Mana..." Remiel greeted formally, motioning for Colette to rise to her feet, "You have done well and have passed now to your first seal..."

"Thank you...my lord..."

"It is I who should thank you, the Goddess smiles upon your actions my dear." Remiel warmly smiled while Colette waited for her trial to begin, "Now rejoice and receive the blessing of Cruxis."

"What of my trial?"

"You have already passed it my child," Remiel explained, "By coming here and defeating the Desian Cardinal, even choosing exile to save a friend, you have proven your worth as a Chosen of Mana."

"I have?"

"Yes," Remiel answered, "Normally, you would be tested here. But the goddess has waived the requirement for this first seal and shall now bestow your blessing."

"Thank you, my lord...But I do not deserve such a blessing. It was not I who defeated the Desian Cardinal-"

"It was you who lead the defense of your village and did you not choose exile to protect your friend?"

"I did." Colette bowed down her head and held her breath, "Goddess' Will be done."

"So shall it be," Remiel decreed as the chamber was bathed in white light, "Now rejoice and receive the blessing of Cruxis."

"Yes Lord Remiel-" Colette shuddered as she felt Cruxis' blessing flow through her body. It's touch was always said to be warm and welcoming, all Colette felt was a shuddering cold. A restrictive rope that wrapped around her bones and poured immense pain into her blood...it was trying to focus all over her body...what would it take first?

Would she lose the ability to taste the kiss of a lover?

Would she be unable to close her eyes and drift into dreams of rest and joy?

Would this blessing cut out her tongue?

Maybe Cruxis would just stop torturing her and take her soul right there?

Or worst, it would cause her to never feel someone hold her hand?

Then it stopped.

"What's this?" Remiel asked in confusion while Colette stood and looked upon her glowing necklace, "A Rune Crest? What blasphemy is this?"

"My necklace..." Colette muttered amazed that her silent prayer was answered, "It was a gift for my birthday-"

"Silence!" Remiel shouted with venom, taking Colette by surprise with his demeanor as he flew down and grabbed the necklace, "This item has diverted the focus of your heart, Chosen One. I sense an impure presence from it which blocks your blessing as the Chosen-" Remiel's eyes widened with shock when he saw a pair of purple, butterfly wings spring from Colette's back.

"You mean these?" Colette asked while her wings fluttered behind her, "You didn't think anyone would ever find out?"

"Find out what?"

"That the goddess...is a lie." Colette answered, "You're just using me to continue a cycle of suffering that you and Cruxis have orchestrated for thousands of years! Did you believe that you could go through with this lie?"

"Lie?" Remiel chuckled and put on his fatherly facade, "I see that the influence of that "Lloyd" has indeed clouded your faith-"

"DWARVEN VOW NUMBER ELEVEN! LYING IS THE PATH TO THIEVERY!" Colette shouted as she grabbed Remiel's hand and forced the stunned angel to let go, "I won't play the part as your sacrificial roast! I won't take part in a system that harms thousands of people!"

"And what is the alternative?" Remiel asked while holding his stiffened hand, "Whether the goddess is real or not, the Chosen of Regeneration is the only one who can restore mana to your world. So either remove that blasphemous item or suffer the judgement of Cruxis."

"No."

"You selfish...selfish little girl-" Remiel shouted when a Ring Blade flew past his face before it circled back to Colette and left Remiel with bleeding gash in his face, "How dare you...you dare strike against a messenger of Cruxis?"

"Yes." Colette caught the ring without looking, "You may have defined my life until now, but that changes now! I am Colette Brunel...my father is Frank Brunel from the town of Iselia. I will be the guide of truth, justice and love for the people of Sylvarant...that is what I am chosen to do."

"And who chose this destiny for you?"

"I did."

"Then in the name of Cruxis..." Remiel rose back into the air and drew a golden bow from his robes, "Prepare to be burned by the flames of divine judgement!"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**Some of you will probably notice the distinct lack of puzzles in this dungeon or any mention of the Sorceror's Ring yet...to be perfectly honest with you...  
><strong>

**This was intentional.  
><strong>

**I hated the puzzle sections of the dungeons, they just felt like an unnecessary tack-on designed to pad out the level and distract from the kickass story and battles. Plus, how do these places even maintain the mana necessary for these complex traps and puzzles anyway? At least the Tethe'alla one's kind of made sense as each puzzle had you actually alter the environment according to the element that you were dealing with. Sylvarant...feels more like a time-waster, especially the first one.  
><strong>

**Plus, this story is more character and story driven anyway, so trying to add in the puzzles would be unnecessary padding at best or distractions at worst.**


	10. Chapter 10

"Foolish girl..." Remiel levitated in midair with his arms crossed over his chest, proud of how the young woman lying on her chest cried out from the arrow that he'd shot through her knee, "Did you really believe that you could stand against an angel of Cruxis?"

"I still do," Colette cried as she broke the arrow and flew into the air and threw a chakram at Remiel which grazed his shoulder, "I will never give up...not as long as I live."

"It doesn't have to end this way child," Remiel warned Colette, projecting a fatherly tone as he spoke, "If you would but remove the blasphemous idol around your neck-"

"Stop lying!" Colette shouted as she gripped her birthday pendant, "I won't remove this necklace! I'll die before that happens and I won't become the vassal of a false goddess! I won't do anything to help your lies."

"I have no use for an unrepentant girl." Remiel declared harshly readying another radiant arrow to fire at the defiant Chosen, "Begone!" Remiel loosed the arrow while Colette braced herself for the attack.

"Guardian Thrust!" Colette didn't move as Lloyd appeared in front of her and thrust into the arrow with his blade. A guardian force field repelled the arrow before it flew towards Remiel and forced the angel to cover himself with his wings, "You alright?"

"Yeah..." Colette answered, further assured by Lloyd's arrival, "How do we stop him?"

"Flame Arrow!"

"Aqua Edge!" Genis cried out from behind Colette, a burst of edged water flew threw the arrow and clashed with Remiel's inflamed arrow. The attack doused out the fire mana, but the light would have hit Genis if it weren't for a card that flew out and sliced the card in half, "Thanks!"

"Don't push your luck kid!" Sheena warned the young elf and then turned to the lightly puzzled Colette, "By the way...sorry for the mix-up earlier."

"It's okay."

"Really?" Sheena asked, "That was easy..."

"Don't expect me to act similarly!" Remiel took out an arrow that glowed and the team watched as it enlarged into a single-pointed spear, "Eruption Lance!" Remiel cast the lance at the team, prompting them all to throw up their barriers before the spear hit in front of them and created a magma-filled explosion that threw back the angel's challengers.

"Everyone alright?"

"We are," Raine answered while Colette, Genis and Sheena rose to their feet, "But our barriers won't be strong enough to take another hit like that."

"Give me a minute and I'll help with that," Sheena stood in place as brown mana gathered around her arms, "Servant of the sublime Mother Earth, by right as the pact maker I command thee."

"Pact maker?" Remiel reacted with shock, shock enough to be distracted when Lloyd jumped at him and Remiel barely blocked the boy's attacks, "Stupid boy! Away from me!"

"No thanks!" Lloyd barked while he jumped up from Remiel and then dove back down, "Falling Tempest!" Lloyd descended on the angel in a vertical spin, slashing the messenger of Cruxis multiple times before both hit the chamber floor.

"Angel Hammer!" Colette furled out her wings, sending a gust of winged hammers that pummeled the off-guard angel as Lloyd continued his assault.

"Come forth, Gnome!" Sheena focused the mana into one of her seals, allowed it to float out into midair and struck it with her hand. The card floated to the floor and became a great concentration of mana from which emerged a giant mole with a shovel its hand.

"Hiya kiddos!" Gnome greeted to the shock of Raine and Colette while Lloyd didn't move his sight from the angel he fought, "Huh? We're fighting this guy?"

"Gnome?" Remiel asked in surprise while using an arrow to deflect Lloyd's midair sonic thrust, "Impossible! You're supposed to be in Tethe'alla!"

"Tethe'alla? So you admit it!" Colette shouted just as an arrow flew past her head, "Remiel! Why hide behind all of these lies?"

"Oh take your naivety and shove it!"

"I can help with that!" Gnome cried happily as he used his stabbed his shovel into the ground and gave it a light pat, "Stalagamite!" The angel was unprepared for when a pointed hill of stone and rock slammed into his stomach followed by two more that struck his wings.

"Thanks!" Lloyd rain up the hill of stone and began to rain a series of cuts upon the angel, "You're mine now!"

"It'll take more than this to stop me!" Lloyd's blade struck across his face as he finished, causing his skin to crack and a red magmatic energy to sip out of those cracks and cover him, "Holy Lance!" Lloyd gulped as a lance of bright light flew into his chest and forced him into the ground as he cried out in pain.

"Hang on Lloyd!" Raine shouted while raising her staff as Lloyd pulled out the lance, "First Aid!"

"Thanks!" Lloyd stated as he stood up and felt Raine's mana heal him while he turned back to the oversized gnome, "Any help would be great right now!"

"Already doin everything that I can..."

"What?"

"Remiel's invoked Efreet to fuel his power, so I can't directly get involved anymore than I have." Gnome muttered from the earth patch that he stood on, "Sorry kiddo, those are the rules."

"Why not?"

"He's still increasing our defense with his earth magic," Sheena said to the young elf before throwing out a card at Remiel, "It's not much, but it's better than nothing, all things considered."

"That's fine!" Lloyd said as he stood back up and readied to charge against the angel again, "We'll take this guy down anyway!"

"We need to neutralize that flame armor that he's wearing!" Genis pointed out as Remiel was pushed back by Colette's winged chakram, "Hey Lloyd, can your sword absorb mana?"

"This one?" Lloyd held up the Aeglos sword and thought carefully, "Yeah...I think so..."

"If that really is an Aeglos sword..." Genis muttered while in thought himself, "Then I can temporarily infuse it with my Aqua Edge spell."

"That's too dangerous Genis!" Raine chatised her brother as she erected a barrier to hold off another one of Remiel's arrows, "Your mana hasn't fully recovered from when that warrior sealed you! If you try to infuse that spell into Lloyd's sword, you might die-"

"And I if don't then we'll all die anyway!" Genis yelled back and regretted it from seeing his sister's hurt expression, "I don't really know what's going on or whose right or wrong...but I trust you Lloyd! I trust that you'll do whatever you can to find the truth and protect Colette."

"Genis..." Lloyd looked to Raine to see if she had any objections, the professor looked solemn, but she nodded her head, "Alright! We'll do it."

"Lloyd..."

"It's his choice Professor...and we don't have a better plan anyway!"

"Besides, I'll be fine." Genis assured his sister while holding up his hand to show the gemed crest around it, "I'll probably be out of the fight, but I'll have enough mana to survive."

"An exsphere? Where did you get that?"

"It was...Marble's..."

"Genis..."

"Am I interrupting anything?" Sheena asked while standing on a pillar of rock and throwing up a card to erect a small barrier to ward off one of Remiel's arrows, "No! No! Please take your time! I was just getting warmed up anyway!"

"Allow me to assist you in that regard!" Remiel declared while charging power to the arrow in his bow, "Inferno!" The angel fired the arrow straight at Sheena and laughed when Colette flew into it's path while the arrow exploded with furious mana that burned against the two women.

"Sheena! Colette!"

"Don't worry about us!" Colette shouted back to Lloyd despite holding her arm in pain, "Do what you have to do Lloyd!"

"What she said!" Sheena added while partially dazed, "This guy couldn't hit the broad side of a mountain anyway!"

"How about you?" Remiel asked as a Holy Lance flew towards the shinobi from Mizuho, forcing her and Colette to dodge to either side of the attack.

"I will..." Lloyd silently promised while Colette continued to fight, determined, he turned back to Genis, "So what do I do?"

"You'll have to put the sword's point onto my exsphere." Genis explained as Lloyd followed the instructions, "Good, now don't move it."

"Alright," Lloyd waited while Genis channeled mana from his exesphere that traveled along Lloyd's arm to the Aeglos sword. Noticing Raine stand and look at them, Lloyd grit his teeth, "What are you standing there for! Heal Colette and Sheena!"

"Very well," Raine solemnly agreed, "But hell will have no furry but my hatred if he dies Lloyd!"

"I know..." Lloyd agreed as he felt a warmth from his exesphere while Genis start to pant with rising exhaustion, "My exesphere?"

"What's happening?"

"I don't know..." Lloyd muttered as his arm was suddenly embroiled in a searing red mana, "Hot...Cold...Ah!"

* * *

><p>"Yuan!"<p>

"I know Botta." Yuan answered his lieutanent without looking while he sat in the office of the Renegade Headquarters, "Lloyd has discovered a few other capabilities of the Angelus Crystal."

"Absorbing mana?"

"Not just mana." Yuan explained to his long-time associate, "The crystal is reacting to the mana given off by Efreet after the Chosen released the First Seal. Now it's taking in Efreet's very signature, adding another attribute to Lloyd's mana."

"Amazing."

"If Lloyd can survive the transformation." Yuan mused, "Hopefully he isn't trying to absorb a spell with the Aeglos sword."

"What will happen then?"

"Pain."

* * *

><p>Back in the crossroads between chambers, Kratos fought alongside a newly released Cruxis prisoner to hold off a squad of elite Desian guards. Based on their knowledge of anti-magic barriers and surprisingly competent equipment and skills, Kratos figured that they were personally trained by Angels from Cruxis.<p>

To guard the prisoner who had cut down two of them.

"What was that?"

"You sense it as well?"

"A rising mana scent..." Kyros muttered while repressing the casting ability of one of the two warriors that he dueled and was momentarily stunned when the man's arm burst from his socket. Momentarily distracting his partner long enough for Kyros to stab his sword through the man's chest and slash out to nearly cut him in half, "Mithos completed the evolving exsphere, didn't he?"

"Yes..." Kratos answered while wordlessly embedding a sword through the visor of a desian and bashing his shield upon the side of another.

"I thought something was odd about that boy." Kyros muttered to himself while facing off with another desian elite, while strong, they weren't ready or faced to battle two foes of the calibur that they faced, "No wonder you let him go ahead so easily."

"I had no idea that this would happen..." Kratos admitted, "Lloyd has unlocked the Angelus Crystal's mana absorption ability..."

"The exsphere is absorbing mana?"

"Specifically Efreet's mana." Kratos explained to the intrigued Kyros, "But I never thought it would activate so soon."

"Is this worse than me accidently sealing his half-elf friend?"

"Possibly."

* * *

><p>"Impossible..." Remiel growled with rage as Lloyd's swords glowed with the furious ember of Efreet, "How...how can a mere human...harness this raw mana?"<p>

"I'll give you a hint," Lloyd said as he launched himself from the ground and dived for the angel, "Fire Rain! Aqua Thrust!" With his left hand, Lloyd rapidly thrust his sword to clash against the Angel's equally furious armor and ducked under the angel's strike before delivering a water-charged thrust into the angel's side.

"You'll have to do more than that!" The angel grunted as he pushed off the warrior, "Judgement Ray!" The angel held up his hand to summon a field of Cruxis emblems filled with angel feathers underneath him. Knowing that this wasn't good, Lloyd braced himself as the light of judgment began to rain down on the already ruined seal chamber.

"Guardian Feathers!" Colette cried as she flew above Lloyd and Sheena and furled out her wings to create a wave of feathers that each produced a barrier that blocked the rays of judgement.

"Thanks!" Sheena stated as she focused, "Earth Seal! Stone Grab!" Sheena slapped a card into the ground with a hand of earth and stone reaching up to grab the Angel.

"Release me!" The angel demanded as he emitted an aura of fire that burned the hand while he brought his bow to his hands, "Molten Arrow!" The angel fired a fire charged arrow at the party that exploded in front of them, sending out a burst of heated energy that burned their bodies as the angel laughed.

"Hold on everyone..." Raine muttered as her armless shoulder began to ache from the heat of the attack, "Healing Circle!"

"I'm going in!" Lloyd didn't wait for the healing magic to fully kick in as he ran towards the messenger of his beloved's oppression, "Here I come!"

"Don't push your luck!" The angel spat as he swat out his arm, only to have Lloyd cut through it and strike the angel's chest before jumping back, "Damn it!"

"His armor's starting to weaken!" Colette called out while focusing with her unfurled wings, "Angel Feathers!" A surge of white and bright feathers flew towards and around the messenger that cut at the weak points in his armor while he cried out in frustration and pain.

"Don't count me out yet!" Genis shouted while holding his chest, "Aqua Edge!" Using the spear of a fallen desian elite as a catalyst, the young elf focused his spell into the spear and threw it towards the angel where it embedded itself through the man's knee and broke the last of his molten armor.

"You unrepentant fools!" Remiel roared while pulling the lance from his knee and empowering it with his furious and holy might, "Holy Lance!"

"Hold on!" Colette caught the lance just as it was thrown and tossed it back at the messenger and embedded it through his chest while he cried out in true shock, "You can't call yourself holy anymore!"

"That's my girl!" Lloyd yelled with pride while Colette beamed back at him, "All out!"

"Hydro Ball!" Genis and Raine declared while Raine gave off mana for Genis to focus and harness into a ball of pure water which flew towards the Angel and encased him within it.

"Serpent Seal!" Sheena threw a card with the seal of snake on it onto the ball of water and watched as the card dissolved into a pair of dark liquid snakes that swam towards Remiel and wrapped themselves around him before biting into his neck and side of his head.

"Angel Ring!" Colette brought out her chakram and threw it towards Remiel while a ring of angel feathers circled around it. The chakram impacted the water and filled with light that caused Remiel to cry out within the water while it steamed and evaporated.

"Sonic Thrust!" Lloyd jumped up and shiftly stabbed down the angel with all of his might before jumping back to Colette's side, "Colette?"

"I'm here Lloyd!" She placed both of her hands on Lloyds while Lloyd guided them so that she was holding them in some strange duet, "Angelic Thrust!" With Colette's flight and Lloyd's strength, the couple flew towards Remiel and thrust through him once more while he gaped quietly at the reality of his defeat.

"Im...possible..."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**Hope you enjoyed the boss fight with Remiel...honestly, he's one of those characters that I always hated with repeat playthroughs. Everytime I saw that smug messenger float down and tell a young girl to sacrifice more of her humanity, I just wanted to reach in and shove my fist down his throat till he choked.**

**Hopefully, I wasn't alone and some of this sipped into the story, hopefully it had an enjoyable affect on this, the previous and the next chapter.**

**Got nothing else right now except...**

**Did anyone ever meet an NPC in an RPG that they really wanted as a party member but couldn't? Here's something fun, name em and explain why you wanted them in your party. It can be serious or silly, it's up to you.**

**Me, I always wondered why Yuan couldn't be a party member? He's such a deep character, technically a good guy who did a lot of questionable stuff to try and stop Mithos including attempting to murder his best friend, Kratos multiple times to acquire the Eternal Sword. Why didn't he just trick Lloyd and the crew into killing Kratos instead of telling Lloyd who his father is and giving him less of a reason to kill him?**


	11. Chapter 11

**Copyright: You're on a fanfiction site, do I really need to say anything? Why would I want to be sued? I don't own Tales of Symphonia...**

* * *

><p>"How..." Remiel stood on all fours, blood pouring from his wounds and missing eye while his enemies stood before him victorious, "How could an angel, the ultimate being...be defeated by a group of inferior beings?"<p>

"Dwarven Vow Number Seven," Colette answered, "Justice and Love will always win!"

"You dare speak..." Remiel spat, straining to look into Colette's eyes, "You who have condemned your world to die!"

"Shut up!" Lloyd roared at the fallen angel, scrapping the blades of his swords against each other as he walked towards the fallen foe, "I think it's time to end your lies once and for all-"

"Lloyd..." Colette placed her hand on Lloyd's shoulder, "Let me take care of this."

"Colette..."

"Trust me," Colette whispered, "Maybe he himself doesn't know about the truth."

"So Yuan was right," Sheena said and noticed the observant glance of Raine, "You didn't know?"

"That would explain everything..." Raine concluded hesitantly, "Lloyd's mana...Colette's change...this entire mess..."

"I can explain the rest after we deal with him." Sheena said to Raine while Lloyd stepped back leaving Colette kneeling down to the angel, "You sure about letting her talk to this guy?"

"No." Lloyd admitted, "But if he tries anything, I've still got enough to finish him off."

"If I give you this gel, will you be able to return to Cruxis?"

"COLETTE!"

"Lloyd..."

"You're going to offer him aid!" Lloyd shouted, "You can't be serious!"

"Lloyd! Don't yell at Colette like that!"

"You don't know this man, Genis!" Lloyd shouted at Genis, "He's part of a system that lies to thousands of people and then uses their lives as a cosmic plaything for a sick exchange! All while choosing innocent people like Colette and forcing them into this journey of regeneration! This isn't a journey to regenerate the world! It's just a sick, torturous ordeal that young boys and girls have had to go through for four thousand years! At the end of it, they're cast aside for not being fit to serve as the "goddess' vessel! Then they cycle through the same process in the world parallel to ours! This isn't a journey of regeneration, it's just a front for Cruxis' selfish actions! And Colette is actually offering to help one of the guides whose led hundreds if not thousands to their deaths!"

"Because it's the right thing to do." Colette calmly answered Lloyd, much to his surprise and mild shame, "I know that it's hard, but we shouldn't become as bad as those who oppress us. We've already defeated Remiel and unlocked the Fire Seal...and now I know why you don't want me to remove this present...to protect me from "Cruxis' blessing."

"I'm sorry that I didn't tell you sooner."

"It's alright, I was overwhelmed before and I wasn't sure about how I would be." Colette confessed, "But now, I know that I can still be Colette. Just because I'm not the Chosen anymore...or rather...the chosen of the goddess, that doesn't mean that I can't be me. Just because the goddess...is false...that doesn't mean that I can't be a good person that I was taught to be. But now, I can be that person because I want to be good, not because I have to. Sylvarant is my home and it still needs to be saved. So I will save it with truthful actions and not through deceitful actions, whether I knew about it or not. That means forgiving people who wronged me...even if I would rather not."

"Colette...you're so strong," Lloyd said to the smiling girl, "That's why I love you."

"Thank you Lloyd...What?"

"Did I say that out-loud..."

"How cute..."

"Ha! You owe me when this is over Raine!"

"Unfortunately...you're right...Genis..." Raine mused with a light chuckle and found that she was being joined by their fallen foe, "Why are you laughing?"

"What's so damned funny?"

"Naive...all of you..." Remiel stated with a strained laugh that continued in spite of his pain, "Do you fools even know why the worlds were split into two? Why this cycle has been imposed? Why the Great Kharlan Tree died? Because of you foolish humans...humans who believed that they could control everything little thing that they touch!"

"Coming from who again?"

"Don't you dare judge me boy!" Remiel cried out before he spat blood onto the floor and grabbed his bleeding stomach, "You may not like it, but our actions have ensured the worlds have survived at all! Without us, you humans would have destroyed the worlds long ago! Lord Yggdrassial divided the worlds to prevent them from draining all mana dry! And you have the gaul to judge us when you're only alive on this world because of Cruxis' actions! Have any of you ever seen a Mana War? It's repercussions on the land and it's people? Without us, that war would have left this world dried and dead long before any of you could have been born!"

"Give me a break!" Sheena shouted at Remiel, "You really expect us to sit here and listen to a mass murderer and liar talk about how justified his cause is? Here's what you can do! Go to a place called Mizuho and tell them that same speech! Tell the graves of children and pregnant mothers who you've murdered that their deaths justified your twisted utopia! Tell that to all of the Chosens who went down this path and found out that it was all a lie and that they gave their lives for nothing! Then you can try and talk!"

"What's worse about this?" Remiel continued, finally managing to stand straight up on his knees and look at his vanquishers, "You're probably only in this to save your precious beloved! That's what Lord Yggdrassial is doing as well! You're no different from the man who you're rebelling against! You'd probably watch the world burn for a mere chance to save your beloved and that's exactly what's going to happen! You selfish..selfish child! What would it matter if your precious Colette were to die during her journey? Wouldn't this be worth to give your world a fair share of generations of prosperity instead of the rabble they will likely be trapped in at best? And what of your alternative plan? I've heard nothing of an alternative save for boasts to find a better way? Where is that better way? What is that better way? There is none! And any plan you create will be useless without the Eternal Sword anyway!"

"The Eternal Sword?" Lloyd asked, catching onto Remiel's last sentence, "Hold on! What is the Eternal Sword?"

"Yggdrassial's blade." Remiel explained, "It is a weapon of infinite power created for Lord Yggdrassial by Origin and it is forever out of your reach...human..."

"Lloyd..." Colette muttered pleadingly, "He doesn't know anything else...he's just spitting you...don't waste your strength, you're better than he is."

"Alright..." Lloyd reluctantly agreed as he threw an Apple Gel at the angel, who then quickly applied it to his most severe wounds, "You're healed, now leave."

"You really sure about this?"

"Yes."

"Alright..." Sheena looked on as the angel's wings regrew and he began to ascend, "Just make sure that it doesn't bite you in the ass like it did me."

"What happened?"

"I'll talk about it later."

"I have just enough power...to return to Cruxis..." Remiel stated while still holding his side with one arm and his eye with the other, "Fair well...fools..."

Then a pillar of light enraptured the being and when it was gone, so was he...

* * *

><p>"Hear that?"<p>

"The guardian of the seal," Kratos chuckled from catching his own words, "No...the angelic messenger has failed...this will not end well."

"What won't?" Kyros asked, "The Chosen isn't the brat's tool?"

"No, not anymore." Kratos freely answered, his voice sounded both regretful and strangely hopeful, "They are paving forth their own path, another way to free the worlds or at the very least, themselves."

"I see..." Kyros nodded, impressed by this Chosen, "Alright, he must plan to release the summon spirits then?"

"Apparently," Kratos answered, "Whatever Lloyd's full plan is to be, he will need men like you and I to assist him. Efreet is not a foe to take lightly afterall."

"Nor will Mithos and the rest of your friends," Kyros replied casually, "Does Mithos know about your betrayal? Or he is simply unable to do anything about it?"

"Until Mithos says otherwise, I am to protect and observe the Chosen," Kratos stated to the shrugging ex-prisoner, "What of your plans? Do not seek revenge from me?"

"Not you..." Kyros answered while cleaning off the sword that he'd picked off of the Desian High-Captain, "The blue haired elf with a stick up his ass."

"Him..." Kratos exhaled, recalling exactly why Kyros wanted Yuan dead and how their mutual hatred led to Martel's death and in relation, all of this, "Would you be willing to postpone that plan until your mutual enemy is dealt with?"

"I'm not in a hurry, sure." Kyros replied much more easily than Kratos had feared, "I'm still not completely recovered from that seal I had on me...hell...I won't be anywhere near my old self for a long time."

"How do you have any mana at all?"

"That ninja from Mizuho, Sheena." Kyros answered, "Some of Gnome's mana must've flowed into mine when she healed me after releasing me...not sure why though."

"They never forget their past pact-owners." Kratos explained to the former hero of ages past, "Though your pact was broken, Gnome was still willing to silently replenish some of your strength through his current pact-owner."

"And she managed it by herself?"

"I wouldn't know."

"By the way...who was Gnome's previous pact-owner...and whose is Efreet?"

"Mithos..." Kratos answered while studying the annoyed features of Kyros' tanned face while fingering his neck-length grey hair, "Having doubts?"

"Oh no!" Kyros replied while walking towards the seal chamber, "I'm motivated...let's take Efreet away from Mithos."

"So soon? The chosen and her friends will likely need rest after what they've-" Kratos stopped when he heard a young woman scream someone's name, "As I feared...we must hurry, we may need you."

* * *

><p>"A Rune Crest?" Yggdrassail slouched in his throne while Remiel bowed before him, shaking in fear from the truth of his failure, "How did the Chosen acquire a Rune Crest I wonder?"<p>

"I do not know-"

"Silence." Remiel did just as his lord had commanded, around him stood his fellow arc-angels who eached looked down upon him. Peliel was both saddened and pitied by his state, Kutiel surpressed a laugh and did nothing to hide how much he enjoyed Remiel's humiliation and pain, and Cammael regarded him as a corpse.

"You have failed to bring the Chosen back upon her set path." Yggdrassial continued, "And now you claim to have been beaten by not only the Chosen, but that you failed to subdue her guards and that they were assisted by a summoner from Tethe'alla?"

"Remiel dared not speak, he just kneeled, praying that his lord would show mercy.

"I declare my judgement." Remiel's eyes widened as he reached out for his master before a beam of terrible light enveloped and burned him...first his skin was melted away, next came his muscle and finally, the last sight of Remiel, Arc-Angel of Cruxis, was a skeleton that cried out in pain before it too was enveloped and destroyed forever by the light of his master's judgement.

"Let that be an example to the rest of you." The remaining three arc-angels turned towards their master, ignoring the blackened spot where their colleague had stood, "I have not waited four thousand years just to allow my patience to have come to nothing. In the future, should any of you fail to persuade the Chosen to rejoin this path, do not come back here."

"If you do." Another beam of light pierced the blackened spot in Yggdrassial's throne, evaporating the ashes of Remiel while the arc-angels remained unmoving, "When you are sent, do not return until either I summon you or you have the Chosen under my power once more. Peliel, Kutiel..."

"My lord..."

"Lord Yggdrassial?"

"The Chosen will chose either the seal of water or of wind," Yggdrassial stated while Cammael did not stir while his colleagues were debriefed, "I want both of you to wait for the chosen within those areas and coordinate amongst yourselves and the Desian Grand Cardinals, ensure that the Chosen has no rest when she comes there."

"I understand master." The blue haired arc-angel agreed with a bow, "She shall find no rest in the waters of the Thoda Geyser..."

"Nor will the wind of Balacruf comfort her," Kutiel added proudly though he too bowed, "What of her companions? Shall they be slain?"

"If you must," Yggrassial answered, "But bring me the Angelus Crystal if you can...if not, destroy it and it's wielder."

* * *

><p><strong><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>**

****Why did Kratos and Kyros hear a scream? Now that Yggdrassial knows of the Chosen's defiance, how will he regain control of her path? What is next for Lloyd and the gang?****

****Answers will come...as they come...****

****Well, this one was surprisingly easy to write up, it's the previous chapter that was harder mainly because it was an extended boss fight with a character whose not even supposed to be fought until later in the game, mainly at the big reveal scene just before the group went to Tethe'alla. The next chapter will probably be another friendship bonding moment along with more LloydxColette fluff because...they're the main pairing of the story.****

****Here's another question, I never actually played the TOS sequel, Dawn of a New World. Though the reaction to it was mixed at best, what did you guys think? What did you like about it and what did you hate, because I'm considering renting either that game or Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn.****

****So until next time folks, Read, Review and Enjoy!****


	12. Chapter 12

**Copyright: I own nothing.**

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><p><em>"LLOYD!" The boy could barely hear her calls while the fire raged upon his skin and within his very soul, "SOMEBODY HELP HIM!"<em>

_"Cast a water spell already!"_

_"No!" He heard his teacher yell out and his youngest friend grunt and struggle, "Genis no! Using water will only make it stronger!"_

_"What do we do then?"_

_"NOTHING! There's nothing that we can do!"_

_"Just as I feared." He heard a man say while his knees buckled under his own weight, "You pushed yourself too far Lloyd."_

_"What do you mean!" He heard Colette demand the newcomer, "You knew that this would happen to Lloyd? Then why weren't you with him?"_

_"Mana overcharge?" He heard an unfamiliar voice ask outloud, "And they wonder if there's any reason to be wary of magic...it's not the magic that's the problem, it's fools who go too far while using it-"_

_"Are you going to stand there and snark or are you gonna help him?"_

_"As you wish." The unfamiliar voice stated and Lloyd heard a hand slap the ground. Immediately, he felt cold, suppressive mana flow into the wounds from which the flames erupted, "What happened to him?"_

_"We'll explain later..." His teacher stated as Colette caught him in her arms just as the fire went out, "Colette Wait!"_

_"I'm not waiting!" He saw steam rise from the burns in her arms while she held him, "Lloyd...wake up...Lloyd...Lloyd!...LLOYD!"_

* * *

><p>"Lloyd!" Lloyd's eyes began to open and felt someone's hand holding his own, "You're awake, thank goodness!"<p>

"Colette..." Lloyd said and saw his beloved at the side of the bed that he slept in. Behind her were several other friends as well, "Genis...Sheena...Raine...what happened?"

"I'd like you for you to tell me that." Raine asked with a worried tone, "You scared us Lloyd...I thought that I wouldn't be able to heal you."

"Huh? Why?"

"You don't remember?" Sheena asked, "Your exsphere started producing a lot of mana and it set you on fire. Pain must've knocked you out...when we finally put the fire out..."

"We thought that you were gone..." Colette mumbled and her eyebrows rose as she became angry, "Don't do that again Lloyd!"

"I don't even know what I did..."

"JUST DON'T DO IT!" Lloyd jumped from Colette's scream and Colette inhaled, "I don't know what I'd do...if I lost you..."

"Colette..." Lloyd wanted to get up, but the professor poked Lloyd's chest with her staff to push him back into the bed, "Professor..."

"We're not taking any chances, you're staying in bed until your mana stabilizes," Raine stated, "My guess is that this is a reaction to that stunt you pulled while fighting Remiel."

"You mean when me and Genis infused my swords with water mana and fire mana?"

"Exactly! Especially while Efreet's mana is swirling around you!" Raine yelled, "It was the heat of the moment so I didn't think of it...but the water-based mana from Genis' Aqua Edge could only last so long. After it was used up during the battle, the water within the mana broke down into the base components of Water."

"You mean air and hydrogen?"

"Hydrogen and Oxygen to be specific, both of which are very inflammatory by themselves." Genis clarified regretfully, "I'm sorry Lloyd, I should've said something before I agreed to it-"

"Don't be, we made a choice and that choice paid off." Lloyd assured his friend, "But...let's try not to experiment like that again, alright?"

"I'd agree." Raine added as well, "Colette, make sure he doesn't leave that bed."

"Yes ma'am."

"Get well Lloyd!"

"You shouldn't take that long to heal, nice move by the way." Sheena complemented Lloyd who smiled and nodded to her, "Anyway, I'll get out of your hair."

"How do you feel?"

"Actually, I feel great." Lloyd answered Colette and reached out towards a glass cup on the dresser next to his bed, "I really don't see what the professor is so worried about-" Upon touching the glass, the cup fractured and broke sending pieces across the top of the dresser.

"Lloyd!" Colette said with concern, "I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I didn't mean it-"

"It's fine...just..." Lloyd seemed more amazed at the smoke that rose from his hand rather than the broken cup, "I see what she meant about my mana...being unstable."

"Your arms are still super-heated from when you used Efreet's mana." Colette explained while she hesitantly sat on the side of the bed and grabbed Lloyd's arm, "Don't worry about me, I've been close to you since this started so I'm used to your heat."

"Aren't...you hot?"

"Not really, the professor said that my..."blessing" would increase my body's endurance," Colette said while Lloyd let her hold his arm and guide his hand to her face, "You're very warm..."

"I'm supposed to be..." Lloyd said and saw Colette gulp before she laid his hand upon the top of her chest, "Colette! What are you doing?"

"It's really hot..." Realizing that something wasn't right with Colette, Lloyd took hold over his own urges and pulled his arm out of Colette's hands. Sparking her out of her trance and bringing her attention to the hand print on her chest, "Not...really sure about what came over me...I'm sorry that-"

"Sorry about what?" Lloyd asked, wanting to know what had possessed his Colette to act so boldly, "Did...did I pressure you?"

"No!" Colette yelled out in panic and immediately pulled her legs up to her chest, "Isn't this what people do when they...love each other?"

"Colette..." Lloyd said with confusion and then recalled what he had absently confessed after defeating Remiel, "You still remembered that."

"Did you...you didn't mean it-"

"No! I do love you!" Lloyd said while grabbing Colette's shoulders, "I...just wanted to tell you at a better time or in a better way...instead of just blurting it out like an idiot..."

"You dork." Colette replied, "You meant what you said and that's what matters to me...because..."

"You did say 'love each other.'" Lloyd pointed out, "I'm just sorry that it took all of this for us to realize it and admit it to each other."

"So am I...but I just didn't want to hurt you." Colette explained while a tear fell down her cheek, "Could imagine how painful it would've been for both of us...if I was still the Chosen and you had to watch me go through Cruxis' Regeneration? It would have destroyed us both...I didn't want to put you through that."

"That's so stupid..." Lloyd mumbled, "But I'm not going to talk...I'm just as guilty...thinking that it had to be grand or fancy or else it would be nothing."

"Glad that you grew out of it." Colette bluntly said and placed her face closer to Lloyd's, "But even if you didn't, I love you Lloyd."

"Colette...I love you too." Lloyd said and found his lips crashed with her's. At first a simple kiss, but it grew into a deeper embrace as Lloyd heard Colette pull something down her dress, "Colette..."

"I...just want to make things even." Colette said after unzipping her dress, "Now we'll both be naked."

"Now we're..." In his confusion, Lloyd had failed to notice or remember that his clothes had been burnt by the earlier incident. While realizing this, he was unable to keep Colette from removing her dress, "You're a bad girl Colette..."

"I'm not the Chosen anymore...I don't have to be good..." Colette playfully replied while Lloyd smirked and tackled Colette into the bed, "Lloyd!"

"Tickle Rain!" His fingers danced and darted into her stomach, sending impulses that caused her to uproariously laugh, "Tickle Thrust!"

* * *

><p>"You sure that you wanna leave them by themselves?"<p>

"You saw how worried Colette was for Lloyd, it'll put her at ease." Raine suggested to her brother and heard Colette laugh from inside of the mostly buried stone mansion, "Hear that?"

"We'll probably have another sound with the way Colette's been-" Genis grabbed his head after Raine's staff swiftly whacked it, "What was that for?"

"Children should mind their business on that angle." Raine lightly rebuked his little brother, "This was convenient to find, thank you."

"Don't worry about, technically it's part of whatever Triet used to be." Sheena replied while looking at the various pieces of architecture that remained buried in the sand, "I prefer greener areas myself, but I work with this. Plus I won't argue with it being an oasis."

"Neither would I." Raine said and looked over to where Kratos was talking to anothing sitting figure, "What are they talking about?"

"I think Kratos is filling in that Kyros guy about what's going on." Sheena replied, "For a guy whose been imprisoned and tortured in magma for four thousand years...he's taking all of the knowledge pretty well."

"Four thousand years!" Raine's eyes widened in amazement and despite lack of physical evidence, her own eye testimony to the advanced seal that the man had used earlier indicated runes from a language that hadn't been sighted four thousand years, "That means...he was...alive when...the Kharlan War..."

"Oh no...look what you did..." Genis muttered while Raine stood in place with her mind racing from the opening doors of possibility, "Great...she's gonna drown in questions about magi-technology, the culture of the past, if he knows about sites that are ruins today and so on."

"He'll be alright."

"If you say so." Genis exhaled when his sister calmed slightly, "So what are we gonna do about Efreet and Cruxis?"

"It looks like Lloyd's the one with the plan, so we're waiting till he recovers." Sheena stretched her arms over her head and sat next to a tree, "Haven't relaxed like this in a long time..."

"By the way...you said that you were from Tethe'alla right?"

"Yeah..." Sheena reluctantly answered, "I guess my story is the same as Lloyd's, only I didn't do so well."

"What do you mean?" Genis asked when Sheena stood up, "Sheena? I'm sorry if I said something wrong."

"Sorry, I'm just not ready to talk about it." Sheena stated while eyeing the oasis pool nearby, "I stink...I'm going to put some water on my skin. Come fetch me when the men are done talking."

"Fetch you?" Genis asked and immediately his face reddened. But returned to normal when he remembered the expression that Genis saw on Sheena's face, "What do you think she meant about her story being like Lloyd's, sis?"

"She probably was involved in a similar situation to our's back in Tethe'alla." Raine concluded while Genis watched her walk further away from them, "And from the sound of things, she didn't make it as far as we did..."

* * *

><p>"You really are warm..."<p>

"You're not helping." Lloyd muttered and laughed alongside Colette. They were both covered in sweat as they laid under the covers of the bed. A scene that would easily be misinterpreted by anyone who spied on the two of them, "Colette...have you ever thought about what life would be like if you were never made the chosen?"

"This...is the start of fantasy of mine..." Colette admitted happily and sat up in bed, "I always hoped that the goddess would send me back as an ordinary girl. Then I'd find you again and we could start a family...watch them grow and die as an old happy couple warm in their bed."

"How is this the start of that?"

"This was when we started the family." Colette happily answered genuinely. Lloyd, on the other hand, felt heat build up in his face while he stared at the ceiling, "Is something wrong?"

"Eh...well..." Their mutual state of nakedness wasn't doing anything to help Lloyd or the thoughts that Colette's last few words had sent through his mind, "I...want to...have...a family with you...it's just that...I've...never...thought about "making the family"..."

"I see..." Colette now blushed while looking down at her lap, "Maybe I should stand up and..."

"Hold on..." Lloyd reached and felt his hand grab the side Colette's breast. His hand recoiled on reflex while his heart started beating faster, "I'm...I'm so sorry-"

"Keep it there." Colette lightly suggested while Lloyd felt blood build in his nose when Colette turned towards him, "There's nothing to be sorry for...we love each other right?"

"Yeah..." Lloyd's eyes wavered and moved from Colette's face to her bare chest to his growing embaressment and confusion, "I just don't want to pressure you into doing something that...you're not ready for or don't want to do."

"Oh no...is that what I'm doing?" Colette asked as she sank beneath the sheets and covered her own head, "I'm so sorry Lloyd...it's just that I've felt so free to do and think of things that I've never thought worth it."

"You mean...your fantasy?" Lloyd asked while sinking into the sheets as well and placed his face next to Colette's, "Talk to me you dork."

"When I stood up to Remiel and then defeated him with you and everyone with me...I felt strong...stronger than I've ever felt in years." Colette answered, "It was the first time that I'd truly felt like the future was mine to determine. Before, I was unsure about what to do...after you told me everything about Cruxis...I didn't know how to feel or how to think. I'd be told how to think for so long that when I was told that it was alright...that I didn't have to do as I was told anymore...I was afraid."

"After we defeated Remiel, I felt a wall in my soul shatter." Colette kissed Lloyd's forehead and then his lips while they both emerged from under the sheets, "Now I've been thinking about so much! Including...who I want to share the rest of my life with...and everything that I am and that I have. Now that I know that my life is mine to live...I want to live it to the fullest and without any regret or second thoughts. I want my life to be a happy one."

"And I want you to be the one that I share that happiness with." Colette finished, "You don't even have to answer, I know that you feel the same Lloyd."

"Colette..." Lloyd, still flustered, now found the words that he'd wanted to say, "I do want to share my life with you and everything that comes with it...but we have to pace ourselves Colette or else we'll burn ourselves out to quickly."

"You burnt yourself out and you're fine."

"Colette..." Lloyd deadpanned while Colette giggled, "There are "things" that you want to share with me and I'm honored that you trust me. But..."

"Lloyd?" Lloyd placed his mouth to her ear and whispered a brief sentence that reddened her face, "I...didn't think about that..."

"That's the main thing right now..." Lloyd stated, "See what I meant?"

"I guess." Colette agreed and placed her hand into Lloyd's, "What ever happens will happen and we'll face everything together."

"That's my girl." Lloyd replied with an encouraging smile, "How long am I stuck in this room?"

"Just until you cool down."

"When will that be?"

"Not until nightfall at the latest."

"Great...and I mean it."

"I know..." Colette said while prodding Lloyd to embrace her while they both lied down, "Can we...stay like this?"

"Like this..." Lloyd looked into Colette's eyes and chose to trust both himself and the two of them together, "Alright, but if you get hot then tell me."

"I will."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**In all honesty, I felt weird about writing the psuedo-ecchi aspects of this chapter.**

**Mainly because this the first time that I've ever let loose and just wrote it. But I'm surprised that I managed to write it without it having an undertone of having an excuse for the ecchi aspects.**

**Reason that I'm saying this is because the initiator of this situation is very emotionally raw at the moment. As she herself explains, Colette now truly feels freed from the burden of being "The Chosen." Now that she has that freedom, she's still working out the little details about self-control and self-regulation. Especially now with Lloyd returning affectionate feelings for her and the opening doors for a future with him.**

**Lloyd is once more handling a delicate glass while his own hands are still wet and slippery. Canonically, Lloyd had emotions and was expressive, but "deep emotions" like romantic love seemed like something that he didn't think about too much. Not because he didn't care, but because he was always preoccupied with someone else's well-being or trying to figure out how to save the world. Even with the Flanoir Scene, there was never a situation where this type of emotion was chaotically thrown into Lloyd's face for him to awkwardly react to and handle.**

**Now fresh from battle, still recovering and stuck in a tight space with a girl who is emotionally raw and has just learned that he loves her; Lloyd has to help Colette maintain control over her emotions and urges without fracturing her emotional fragility. All while dealing with his own awkwardness and still thinking about securing the future that Colette wants to share with him.**

**The next two chapters will likely be planning chapters filled with mostly dialogue and where everyone lays their stakes on the table to determine their plan. With Remiel dead and the Journey of Regeneration debunked for all intents and purposes, the heroes and the story are both in unknown territory.**

**Sounds fun doesn't it?**

**Merry Christmas everyone!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Copyright: ****I own nothing.**

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><p><strong>Mayor's Office, Palmacosta<strong>

"Governor-General Dorr!" A citizen cried out as he lunged at the intruder and was handily knocked away by the pommel of the warrior's hilt.

"Chill bro...I'm just making sure that the General and I see eye to eye." A handsome swordsman with long red hair stated to the General's assistant with his sword held an inch from Dorr's neck, "See...I don't look kindly on liars and hypocrite my friend."

"You're the liar here boy!" Dorr shouted defiantly, his stare fixed on the intruder's ornate key crest, "I don't care if you do have an exesphere! You're not the real Chosen!"

"Really? You're really gonna doubt the obvious?" The swordsman laughed and pointed his sword to the girl who hid against the closet, "Guess I need to convince you some more...don't I?"

"Not my daughter you bastard!" Dorr shouted before being kicked down as holy energy gathered upon the swordsman, "Please...don't do this...she is innocent!"

"Then she's got nothing to fear...does she?" Zelos asked the mayor as a beam of light blasted through the roof and caught the screaming girl in a pelting ray of light beams that fell from heaven. As Door watched in horror, violent light erupted from the floor underneath the girl and brought even more intense pain upon her decaying features, "Oh...guess she wasn't so innocent after all..."

"My daughter!" Dorr cried out as he ran to the girl after the rays of light faded and found only a small mis-shaped skeleton amidst a pile of ash, "Why...why have you done this? What did she do to you?"

"You defied the Will of Martel by allying with Desians and selling out your own people." Zelos pointed out when he spun around the spear of a heavily armored warrior and quickly slashed through the side of the warrior's chest. As he sheathed his sword and stretched his arms, the armored soldier gasped and fell forward onto his chest, "I mean come on...why would my holy spell kill a child if someone in this room wasn't guilty of a some great sin? Again...doubting the obvious."

"The Chosen was meant to save us...not condemn us!"

"Sometimes you've gotta pull out weeds to save the garden." Zelos noted as he bowed to the mourning mayor, "I think that I'll head to the Academy and sort out this identity thing that you heathen folk seem to be working out. I'll take the best suite at the local inn, no questions got it?"

"Yes...my lord..."

"Hey! Zelos is fine!" The swordsman chuckled before shutting the door behind him and catching the punch of one of his companions, "Farah? What did I tell you about bad ambushes?"

"You killed that little girl!" Farah cried out before grabbing Zelos and throwing him down the stairwell where he gracefully landed. Apologizing the maid who had fallen in shock of his stunt, Zelos quickly lifted the woman into his arms as he dodged Farah's much more violent landing, "Explain yourself!"

"So I'm the Chosen won't cut it?"

"You know that it won't!"

"Then will the real Kilia please stand up?" At Zelos' words, a girl that completely resembled the one that Zelos had killed appeared from next to Zelos' other quiet companion and ran up the stairs crying for her father, "The one in the office was a fake...otherwise the spell would've only mildly irritated the real child."

"Oh..." Farah said apologetically while blushing and looking at the crater that she'd made in the middle of the office lobby, "I will pay for this."

"That you will." Asbel commented with a neutral scowl while Zelos pat the boy on his shoulder, "Now what will we do, Chosen One?"

"Oh simple...we root out all who would dare defane this town by associating with the monstrous Desian scum." Zelos declared with a dramatic flair that earned the admiration of surrounding citizens while Farah and Asbel were taken aback by the performance, "Then I shall track down this "false" chosen and bring her intentions in line with the will of the goddess!"

"I think he's going a bit over the top..."

"That's the point." Asbel said to Farah while Zelos was surrounded by a circle of pretty young women as Asbel buried his face in his palm, "Some reasons for such are more pointless than others..."

* * *

><p>"So what's going on?"<p>

"Desians have started searching the ruins." Sheena reported as she returned to the mostly buried mansion where the party had been hiding out for the past several days, "They had some monsters with them...so they may have heard about us killing their divine messenger."

"Evidently, Cruxis isn't taking kindly to our defiance of their plans." Raine replied as she reflexively massaged the stump on her right shoulder, "I'd say that we're even then..."

"Can we still get to the Seal Chamber once Lloyd is better?" Genis asked, strapping on armored bracelets that he'd found in one of the unsunken rooms of the mansion, "We may have beaten an angel, but an army's still an army."

"Is it wise to act so carelessly?" Kratos asked, a rare feature of worry on his stoic face, "Do any of you have an inkling of an idea as to what your course of action has done?"

"In all honesty, there's something about this situation that isn't understood." Raine admitted, "And you seem more knowledgeble about these things than a common mercenary should."

"He's an ally, why ask for more?" Kyros pointed, "Then again, your kind is always the most suspicious...not without reason, but it can be a hassle."

"What do you mean? My kind?" Raine asked with suspicion, "Do you have a problem with elves?"

"Elf?" Kyros blurted out to Raine's subtle shock, "No, I have a problem with mana casters. But, you're partially responsible for my freedom...so I tolerate it."

"Where's my credit? I'm the one who busted you out!"

"And I did thank you...or did I?" Kyros asked the pouting Sheena and then bowed in the sand before her, "I pledge to honor my debt either way, Sheena of Mizuho."

"Okay! That's enough!" Genis shouted with his hands grabbing his hair, "I'm so confused...can someone just tell me what's going on? I trust Lloyd, but it's just so much...I just want to know what's happening in straight words alright?"

"Sorry Genis...no one hear can do that right now..." Raine stated, "So it's best to just wait for Lloyd to recover and then he'll fill us in on everything that's happened."

"With Colette in there with him...he'll never come out-" Genis was stopped when Raine's staff hit him on the head, "I'm just being honest-"

"Children need mind their business."

"Mind if I check on him?" Kyros asked while Kratos cautiously turned in his direction, "What? We apparently have the same enemy. I just want to meet a potential ally before I get tied up in a possibly suicide mission."

"Hey! Lloyd knows what he's doing!"

"Weren't you just complaining about how confused you were?" Sheena teased as Genis pouted with a blush, "Besides, it's not like this guy knows where he's going if he tries to walk off on his own. You're stuck with us at least until we return to civilization."

"Noted."

* * *

><p>"Are you sure that you're alright?"<p>

"I've been resting for long enough Colette..." Lloyd answered his sweetheart, who sat on the bed wearing her travel dress, "Besides...I don't think that we've seen the worst of things yet."

"The worst?" Colette asked with more curiosity than fear, "I know that we'll have to face Cruxis and the desians when we get to the seals...but we'll beat them...we'll persevere together."

"Thanks Colette...but I'm really talking about Yggdrassial and the Eternal Sword that Remiel told us about..." Lloyd clarified and exhaled, "I don't know...it seems like everytime we take a step forward...the next few steps seem that much harder."

"Then we take things one step at a time-"

"Pardon me...but being a few more steps ahead normally never hurts." A voice that Lloyd barely recognized said from outside of the room, "Your teacher sent me to check on you, mind if I come in?"

"Go ahead..." Lloyd replied after Colette kindly nodded to him. Lloyd buckled his swords onto his belt as a stranger in desian armor entered the room. On reflex, Lloyd moved to draw his swords, but the stranger held out his hand as a token of peace, "Sorry...force of habit."

"Understandable..." The stranger replied as he gave a curt bow, "Kyros Theron and you must be Lloyd Irving."

"Hello again!" Colette replied by giving a curtsy while Lloyd nodded, "You're the one who saved Lloyd! Thank you!"

"All I did was stop the fuel for the fire. Your teacher was the one who healed him," Kyros pointed out while Lloyd put on his jacket, "That thing on your hand...is that an exesphere?"

"This?" Lloyd looked upon his exesphere and held his hand out to Kyros, "You've never seen an exesphere before?"

"Just the one that was strapped to my chest."

"The one that's still there?"

"Still there-" Kyros looked down to find that an exesphere was embedded within the top of his rib cage, "Damn...damn...DAMN!"

"That could be bad..."

"Could be bad? Thanks for pointing that out..." Kyros replied with a hint of sarcasm that made Colette scowl, "I apologize...it's just that I have to fight every urge to rip this exesphere from my body...but it would be a bad idea for multiple reasons..."

"Well...it doesn't look like it has a key crest." Lloyd observed while noting the markings upon the gem, "So until we get you one...removing it will be a problem."

"Not to mention that I was the only thing that was keeping me alive..." Kyros added in defeat, "No wonder I've always healed in that damned pit."

"Hold on...what pit?"

"Oh yeah! The well of magma that Cruxis kept me in for the past 4,000 years." Kyros sarcastically chuckled as Colette's eyes widened in horror and Lloyd scowled, "This wasn't how I planned on telling you this..."

"4,000 years? Cruxis...put an exesphere on you just so that they could imprison and torture you for the past 4,000 years?" Lloyd asked, more shocked at the reason that this exesphere was upon this stranger than that the stranger was over 4,000 years old, "What did you do?"

"I'm on Yggdrassial's most despised list...if the list is even noteworthy anymore..." Kyros answered, tapping the exesphere as she sat in a chair next to the bed, "Can I ask about if you've heard of a Kingdom called Maxwell?"

"Maxwell?" Colette said outloud as if recalling something, "Oh! You mean the kingdom that marched on Treit with it's allies, killed its kings and left the city abandoned to the present day?"

"It wasn't exactly a victory or a defeat...but...victory sounds about accurate."

"That was where you were from?" Lloyd asked, sensing an opportunity with this stranger, "So you were here before Yggdrassial split the world into two?"

"Are you about to ask a long...long...list of questions about culture, history, custom or things that have no relevance now?" Lloyd and Colette exchanged a look as they saw how wearied Kyros was when he asked that question, "Your teacher just about drained me of all of that knowledge...thank you very much..."

"No, I think we'll spare you of a second round." Colette said while Kyros exhaled in relief, "But...we're enemies of Cruxis and we want to stop their plans...their cycle of suffering and all of their lies. If you could tell us anything about how they made things the way that they did...it would help us greatly..."

"I'll see what I can do...but no promises necessarily." Kyros said with a shrug, "I honestly have no idea about this new world...so you scratch my back and I'll scratch yours."

"If you were around all those years ago...you may have known Mithos," Lloyd guessed as Kyros nodded, "You knew the Hero Mithos?"

"Surprised that people know about him..." Kyros answered, "As one of the Princes of Maxwell, I crossed paths with him several times late in my tour of duty. Sometimes my men reported being eluded when he smuggled goods out and more often then not, I'd be called upon to honor my family's debt to one of his companions. I never had much time to personally speak with him, but I didn't need it. I could see it in his eyes. He was the most powerful spell-blade of the age; a cunning leader; a charismatic motivator; and a good friend. Naive perhaps...but the world could always use more people like that."

"Wait...you're a prince?"

"Not of royalty...You see...Sylvarant was divided into princedoms with one king who loosely governed them from a place called Symphonia..." Kyros explained, "I'd only been there once, but the laws of the king were more or less guidelines of conduct and honor that we only half kept. Each princedom was ruled by it's own kingdom as determined by their own set of rules. In Maxwell for example...the next prince was chosen by whomever could complete the Sigil of Aether. Afterwards, they would rule Maxwell until death or until a worthy successor retires them from their seat."

"So what about the Kharlan War?" Colette inquired, "I was told that the Kharlan War was ended by the hero Mithos after he sealed away the desians."

"Speaking of which...what's a desian?"

"I guess desians are just pawns of Cruxis really..." Lloyd answered after thinking for a second, "They attack human towns to pressure the Chosen further on their journey and take captured humans to a ranch where they put exespheres on them and use them as cattle..."

"Oh no..." Kyros breathed in slight panic, "They're that desperate to harness the power of magic...aren't they?"

"I take it that you don't like magic..."

"Apart from how it negatively alters the natural mana of life for petty and selfish intentions and if unchecked can completely distort the Natural Order like how Yggdrassial used it to split the world in half and keep me alive for 4,000 years because I accidently killed-"

"Okay...new subject!" Colette loudly suggested, sensing that magic was a heavy topic for Kyros especially considering his situation, "Can you tell us exactly who Yggdrassial is then?"

"And now we cut to the heart of the matter." Kyros muttered to himself and somehow Lloyd could tell that there was something that he didn't want to say, "Yggdrassial...was a powerful half-elf and a close confidant of Mithos. He meant well, but all he knew and remembered was the hatred that he bore since birth...something that shaped him into a fell creature. Mithos and Martel kept him in check...until..."

"Until what?" Lloyd asked while thinking, _"In short, he's going to tell the truth...he may not tell all of it."_

"Until after Mithos ended the Kharlan War..."

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><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**Despite Lloyd's misgivings, what can he and Colette learn about the origin of Cruxis and it's leader Yggdrassial from this lost prince of the past?**

**Find out in the next chapter, coming soon!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Copyright: Take what you will from this, but I own nothing...sadly...**

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><p><em>"Master..."<em>

_"Desma..." The young commander grabbed his servant's face and pulled it close to his own face, "I've already told you not to call me that."_

_"Kyros...the sight of a human with a half-elf is...a sight of revolting for mortals-"_

_"Are we mortal my princess?" Before she could answer, Kyros pressed his lips onto hers while she returned with a reluctant fervor before she pushed off from him. He honored her wishes and broke the kiss with a knowing smile, "If only my office were strong enough so that we may truly marry."_

_"That is forbidden by the Powers..." Desma brought up as Kyros leaned against the wall in deep thought, "Kyros? My lord?"_

_"Perhaps I can compromise with them," Kyros muttered and brought out a strange crested incomplete sigil that made Desma's eyes widen with amazement, "I have already gathered the proof of Efreet and Sylph..."_

_"But for the proof of Earth you must travel to..." Desma's expression became greatly remorseful when she realized her master's intentions, "Surely you do not intend to travel to Tethe'alla alone?"_

_"If I take anything larger than an entourage of bodyguards then the King's nobles may see it as a violation of the cease-fire." Kyros explained while placing his hand upon Desma's shoulder and caressing it, "That said, I can travel much quicker and quieter as one."_

_"But..."_

_"Though, that may not be wise..." Kyros gently brushed a strap on Desma's dress while her face became flustered, "It is a beautiful dress...but I would rather that you wore something more practical for the journey."_

_"You wish for me to accompany you?"_

_"Must I spell everything out for you?"_

_"As you wish my love..."_

* * *

><p>"Mr. Kyros?" Lloyd watched as the ancient prisoner of Cruxis was stirred from his thoughts by Colette's voice, "It looked like you'd dazed off for a bit."<p>

"I honestly did." Kyros admitted while rubbing his head, "Sorry about that...you asked me about Yggdrassial right? Is he the leader of Cruxis?"

"What were you thinking about?" Colette inquired while Lloyd looked upon his sweetheart with confusion, "You look like you were thinking about something important. Did you used to be married?"

"Colette...I don't think we should bombard him..."

"It's alright, people in love in easily recognize that same sensation on others..." Kyros stated with a sad smile, "And to assure Lloyd, this is actually relevant to the figure of Yggdrassial and the death of Mithos."

"Go on then..." _"There was never a story about anyone named Yggdrassial...then again, it's not like those stories are completely valid anymore anyway..."_

"The Kharlan War was an event that had every kingdom in Sylvarant and Tethe'alla fighting each other." Kyros explained, "Most kingdoms were on the side of their homelands. But some had secretly made deals with kingdoms on the other side to increase their own technology and wealth. A game of thrones if you will...and whoever had the most kingdoms as his ally won. If not...then you died."

"Was Triet one of those kingdoms?"

"Yep and they may have done better if they didn't blatantly betray everyone." Kyros answered with a laugh, "Triet's princes were annointed as the general-kings of Sylvarant's armies by Symphonia. At first it seemed well until it was discovered that Triet had orchestrated the murder of the other candidates with Tethe'alla's help. That was when my forces and eleven other princes joined our flags and besieged Triet and his allies. Allies that included other kingdoms and unmarked platoons from Tethe'alla. We were victorious as you can see...but at a heavy cost. After Triet, neither side had enough power to quickly end the war and that war drained upon the world."

"Just like Remiel said..." Lloyd realized, the very memory of the angel causing him to tighten his fist, "So everything that's happened to us is all your fault-"

"Not because of the war mind you...The Kharlan War was not the first draining war to afflict the land nor was it the worst." Kyros interjected, "Supposedly, the War with the Last High Elven King Galauron did more damage to the world according to elves at the time. But it doesn't matter...my blame for your troubles can be pointed to my own hands."

"So what happened?"

"How did Mithos end the war?" Colette added while Lloyd shrugged his shoulders, "How did he really end the war?"

"Oh that? He found the core summon spirits of the world and formed a pact with them." Kyros answered, "With eight summon spirits at his beck and call, none of us could ignore him. He called down walls of fire...raised up seas to block off fleets...used lightning, ice and wind to break morale enough to halt battles...Had darkness and light to confuse the day with night and even altered the ground to prevent entire hosts from meeting in battle. Eventually, the King of Symphonia and of Tethe'alla choose to heed Mithos' warnings and signed a treaty that officially ended the war."

"Officially?" Lloyd asked suspectively, "I take it that not everyone heeded that treaty?"

"Obviously...my father used to say that peace on earth was just an idealistic lie."

"I'm sorry to hear that..." Colette stated sadly, "Why can't people understand that fighting will only harm themselves and their future?"

"Because we're selfish Colette.." Lloyd replied, "At least most of us are...we're too selfish to see past the obvious to get what we want. It's not always selfishness either...some of us have different plans for doing the right thing."

"Or they just want to watch the world burn..." Kyros added, "Or I'd guess that was the intention of Desma's murderer..."

"Was Desma your wife? How did she die?" Colette asked, earning a slight scowl from Kyros, "I'm sorry...I didn't mean to-"

"She didn't mean to tick you off, she's just asking a question." Lloyd barked with a passive aggression that visibly shook the ancient prince, "So what happened to your wife?"

"To answer the question, one of Mithos' companions...attacked my estate and murdered her..." Kyros bitterly answered as remorse fell across Colette's face, "It was just after Mithos held a summit that ended the War. He stood upon my burning home...mocking my sons as they mourned their mother and unborn brother and I seethed with rage at the betrayal. So I took up his challenge and met him on an ancient graveyard from a time before Tetha'alla or Sylvarant were even named."

"During the battle...Mithos' sister was caught in the crossfire and killed..." Lloyd hesitantly sat down next to Colette and apologetically turned to her while she sat with tears building in her eyes, "Distraught and grieved that the source of his affectionate obsession was lost...Yggdrassial overcame and killed Mithos for failing to protect his sister. Then Yggdrassial turned against me...beat me and imprisoned me in a ring of eternal damnation. Within it...I watched as Yggdrassial used his power to destroy my Kingdom...using it's people as raw mana to sharpen and enhance his new sword."

"How could he do that?" Colette asked with saddened shock, "He destroyed your kingdom as revenge on you?"

"Like I said...he wanted to watch the world burn..." Kyros stated while turning to a nearby vase and grabbing it, "After that...he choose to punish every kingdom and every person who took part in the War. He razed them all to the ground...except for the ones that were on the parallel that he created."

"What parallel."

"The parallel that would be the divide between the two worlds!" Kyros threw the vase into the wall and absently grabbed the exesphere on his chest as if trying to wrench it off, "This exesphere is the compressed form of the mana from that same Ring of Damnation...he bound it to my body so that I would live as an example...That one day...he'd remove it from my body and turn me into the monster that I was...so that all who see me in this life and the next...would look upon me and rebuke me...calling me...Kyros, the Monster that murdered Martel..."

"Then he remade the world in his own image and made sure that no one who survived would know the truth." Lloyd finished while grabbing Kyros hand and pulling it away from the exesphere, "You're no monster, but if you're not touching that thing again until I put a key crest on it...got that?"

"I'm throwing it away-"

"No you're not...you may hate them, but you won't be able to fight with one." Lloyd pointed out while bringing out the exesphere on his wrist, "You've been out of practice for 4,000 years. Maybe you were a strong fighter without an exesphere, but you'll have a hard time against Cruxis without it and it'll be harder to heal you."

"You sound like the Prince of Luin..." Kyros said as Lloyd released his grip, "You look like him too...him and that annoying General from Tethe'alla...Aurion was always a pompous pretentious ass-"

"Aurion?" Lloyd asked while recognizing the name, "Nevermind...the Eternal Sword was what Yggdrassial used to split the worlds...how did he get it?"

"It was forged by Origin, King of the Summon Spirits." Kyros replied, "Origin will only bind himself to those who in turn bind their lives or the lives of those that they care for most to the pact. Only when the Oathbearer releases his mana will the Pact be broken and a new one allowed to be forged."

"In other words, getting the Eternal Sword for ourselves is out of the question?" Lloyd asked himself more than Kyros as he already knew the answer, "Remiel mentioned that it was out of reach for humans..."

"Because Mithos had the sword crafted so that only half-elves can ever wield it." Kyros answered and brought out his hands to show the dull marks from what had to have been heavy burns, "I tried...once...so much for having a distant elven ancestor...he added an ancient elven wood to the hilt which will only allow elves to use it. Then he added his own blood to "taint" the wood, so that only those with both elven and human blood can use the sword."

"There's gotta be away around that..." Lloyd figured and then realized something, "Wait...only people with elven blood can use magic right?"

"Right..."

"And something like Aeglos or Aionis can give humans magic right-"

"Let me step right in there." Kyros interjected with an approving smile, "First, I applaud you for discovering Aeglos; Second, I commend you for adding its properties into your body without dying; and Finally, being able to apply this mana seemlessly into your fighting style and unlocking two Aura Locks. That's something that many elven spell-blades couldn't do in decades and you've done it in a few weeks."

"I...didn't exactly know what I was doing..."

"But it's pointless to worry about the Eternal Sword for now." Kyros bluntly stated, "First, you don't know where it is; Second, it's likely near Yggdrassial whose on a completely different level from either of us with or without the sword; Third, even if it wasn't with Yggadrassial, you'd still have to contend with legions of emotionless and fearless angelic guards when you barely survived one; Forth, you have no way of entering Yggdrassial's stronghold or any way of finding it; and Lastly, we're still stuck in this little predictament concerning you wanting to mess up Cruxis' plans for Regeneration."

"Right..." Lloyd reluctantly agreed and caught something in Kyros' words, "Emotionless? Are they like what they wanted Colette to be?"

"In a fashion...I only remember seeing an angel from time to time..." Kyros shivered as he looked upon the crystal on Colette's chest and then looked down at his own, "But their eyes are unsettling...there was no life or passion within them. It was like watching the walking dead..."

"Is that...what the...Cruxis Crystal would've made me into?"

"It's alright, I won't let that happen." Lloyd assured Colette and held her trembling hand, "Now that Efreet's awake...it's time to forge the Pact with him."

"Are you sure that you're up for it Lloyd?" Colette asked with concern, "It's probably not a good idea for you to jump at a summon spirit after you just recovered."

"That's why I'm gonna stretch out." Lloyd said and flexed his left hand before pointing it to Kyros, "And I'll do that by fighting you."

"As long as there's a healer on stand by..." Kyros agreed, "I haven't quite gotten back my old strength myself...you may be just what I need to really warm up."

"Could it wait?" Colette asked the two swordsmen, "Mr. Kyros...could you ask Kratos for a warm up? Lloyd just got done cooling down and I don't want him to get hurt."

"Colette...I'm fine-"

"Lloyd...lie back down..."

"Yes dear..." Lloyd agreed, deciding that Colette's tone was far too inviting for her statement to have been a light request, "Besides, Kratos is a lot stronger than me anyway."

"He uses magic though..."

"What about those seals that you use? Aren't those magic?"

"Not necessarily..." Kyros clarified to Colette, "Those seals are used to counter magic users by cutting off their utilization of mana. At first it was merely a training method...we were sealed off from most of our mana and forced to survive in the winter wilderness for 40 days."

"Lloyd! Colette!" Genis cried out as he entered the room, heavily panting from what had to have been a long run, "We need everyone topside now!"

"Have the desians found us?"

"I don't know...but we need to move!"

* * *

><p>"We really pissed them off..."<p>

"Were you expecting a warmer reception?" Kratos asked Lloyd while the party was watching an unfolding scene at the Triet Ruins, "I hope you have a plan, Lloyd."

"How many are there?"

"Close to 200...and none of them look like the chumps from earlier." Sheena answered Kyros while they observed the marching platoons that were setting up base around the ruins, "Looks like that green-haired guy brought them here to guard Efreet."

"Green-haired guy?"

"He's probably inside, but he was leading these guys here." Sheena replied to Genis who began to shake, "You okay?"

"Forcystus...he followed us here..." Genis growled and gave a fleeting glance to his sister, "Give me a good shot and I'll make him pay for what he did to Marble and Raine!"

"I'm quite capable of avenging myself," Raine reminded her brother, "Forcystus isn't our goal, we need to form that pact with Efreet and leave the area...the quieter that we can do this, the better."

"Last time we got in, the desians were distracted because of you two." Genis stated referring to Kyros and Sheena, "This time, it's not going to be easy to just walk through the front door...is it?"

"That should be obvious."

"We can still get in though..." Lloyd assured his friends while he saw the patterns with which the desians marched, "We may have to wait until night-time...but we'll find a way inside."

"Sheena? Why don't you lead us?" Colette inquired, "Didn't you sneak into the ruins before?"

"There's no promise that the tunnel I used won't already be guarded by desians." Sheena replied, "But...there's got to be other tunnels that lead to the Seal Chamber."

"The Oasis?" Kyros asked outloud, drawing the attention of the party while a drop of sweat ran down the side of his face, "Long story short, my country led the siege that left Triet ruined. A defecting prince joined us and said that there was a passage that he would lead a select few into to sabotage the enemy."

"How did that turn out?"

"They were successful, but everyone who went on the mission died and the prince was hung in plain sight of the alliance."

"Cheerful..." Genis morbidly said, "But...did they close off the passage?"

"Nope, the enemy assumed that the platoon had bribed their way through."

"That means that the passage was never closed off, at least by Triet." Lloyd figured, "Kyros, do you remember where that passage was?"

"It's been 4,000 years..." Kyros bluntly said while pinching the bridge of his nose, "I highly doubt that an underground passage that was known by basically no one would still be there after all of the earth changing events that have happened..."

"Then again...where did that oasis come from?" Sheena absently asked while gaining Raine's attention, "While I was cooling off there...I did notice this little archway towards the bottom of the pool."

"How far down did it go?"

"If I recall...it went pretty far down..." Sheena answered an interested Lloyd, "But I knew that I'd run out of air before I got all the way down and I didn't want to risk not finding an air pocket."

"That's alright Sheena! I think we've found our passageway!"

"So I take it that the plan is to dive into the oasis, swim towards the bottom to this archway, follow the archway through a flooded tunnel with no guarantee for an air pocket or that it will even lead to the ruins?" Kratos inquired, crossing his arms over his chest while he exhaled, "Then assuming that all goes according to our plans and wishes, we will then sneak through the lower levels of the ruins until we come upon the Chamber of Efreet, forge the pact and either leave the same way that we came in or fight our way through an army of 200 well-armored and trained desians?"

"Yep." Colette answered with a confident smile as Kratos just shook his head, "It'll work out, Lloyd hasn't let us down so far."

"Thanks Colette..." Lloyd said as he placed a hand on Colette's smiling face and massaged her cheek, "And I promise not to strain myself."

"It should be safe for you to be out, just no more stunts like last time." Raine said and paled when she realized a horrible inevitability with the plan, "I can have Kyros apply a blank seal to you and channel a healing Circle on the seal to rejuvenate the last of your strength. After that...you're best carrying on without me."

"What?" Sheena asked while Genis gave a knowing nod, "Come on! If you're worried about not being able to swim with one arm, I can help you down-"

"Even the strongest of wills are brought low by the smallest fear." Kratos said to himself as Colette and Sheena tried to assure an unbudging Raine, "It is true though, Lloyd's luck has held this far. Anna...don't let this change..."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**Now that Lloyd better understands his enemy, can his plan to enter the Triet Ruins succeed? Why has the plan of entry terrified Raine so badly? If they have to move on without their healer, can they survive?**

**Next few chapters will have more action and less talking...promise! Thanks for sticking with it this far folks!**


	15. Chapter 15

It was the middle of the day when Lloyd Irving, Colette Brunel and their companions all decided to employ a daring and crazy plan to enter the Triet Ruins in search of the Summon Spirit Efreet.

A plan that one companion really did not want to take part of.

"I really don't want to..."

"Come on sis!" Genis cried as Raine somehow resisted all attempts from Sheena and Lloyd to get her into the water as Kyros and Kratos looked on while Colette waited with a smile, "It's only for a little while."

"You really don't need me-"

"If you stay here then the desians might catch you!" Lloyd countered with his arms around the elf's waist as Sheena tugged at her arm, "Then we'll all get caught!"

"Like I said, I'll carry you if you can't swim."

"How much longer until someone gives up?"

"Both parties are very stubborn." Kratos answered Kyros as a deflated Genis walked over to them and sat down on the sand, "Is she always like this around water?"

"Yeah...she is," Genis answered, "I don't get why though. She's a mage! Why doesn't she just create an air bubble around herself if she can't swim?"

"Looks like she's just scared of going into water." Kyros figured, "Did she almost drown when she was younger?"

"I don't know...I never knew our parents and Raine never talks about them." Genis replied, "Its been just me and Raine for as long as I can remember and she's always been scared of swimming."

"We really don't have time for this." Kratos muttered in exasperation as Colette suddenly screamed. Kratos turned towards her just as Lloyd released Raine and ran past the mercenary to where Colette was now shaken upon the ground, "Colette?"

"What's wrong Colette?" Lloyd asked his sweet who was now looking attentively at the lake, "Ah not you too! This is just like-"

"Something's in the water!" Colette screamed as she pointed towards a small ripple in the middle of the lake, "I thought I heard something and when I went over to look, I felt something grab me and knock me down."

"So I am not the only one who now sees how unsafe this idea is." A much calmer Raine stated, "So how about just storming the-" A thread of blue silk shot out of the lake and wrapped itself around Raine's legs before pulling her down and dragging her into the water.

"Raine! Wind Blade!" Genis swiped out with his spear as a thin blade of wind mana cut through the silk and freed Raine before she could be dragged under the water's surface. Raine immediately crawled onto the oasis beach and picked up her staff as she stood, "Okay sis...swimming wouldn't be a great idea after all."

"So they're still around..." Kyros noted as he backed away from the oasis with sword drawn and looked upon the sand, "No one make too sudden of a movement."

"You know what that thing was?"

"A string of mana silk...fired from the claw of an extinct creature. Anyone familiar with the Lambton Wyrm?"

"What's that?" Sheena leapt as Writhing serpentine, vermicular creature covered in mud and clear slime burst out of the ground and dove back into the sand before the party could attack it. With nothing but a pit of dark mud left of it's tracks, the party remained understandably on edge.

"That my friends...is a Lambton Wyrm." Kyros stated as the group huddled together into a circular formation, "And it's a big one. Pesky little bastard isn't he? I thought that my father hunted them all down."

"An Ancient and Extinct Creature...at least that was the common thought until now," Kratos stated, "It's a carnivorous worm that feeds on mana from any source that it can find. When it's born, it's only as big as a thumb, but with time and consumption of mana, it grows. Kyros...is it true that these Wyrms grew to the size of humans by the time they matured?"

"Yeah...that about sums it up." Kyros answered, "My father loved hunting these things. I was about twelve on his last hunt and there were two Wyrms...one was the size of two humans stacked on top of each other...really tough too."

"And the other?"

"Almost as large as this guy." Kyros answered the now concerned Colette, "And father had just murdered it's young so it wasn't happy."

"Did it kill your father?"

"It got close, but father managed to elude it long enough for help to arrive and help him finish it off."

"Now how do we stop it-" Suddenly something tied Sheena's legs together and dragged her into the now damp sand. The Wyrm emerged from the sand with Sheena caught in it's maw, several pincers crusted out of it's flesh that attacked and scattered the party. A string of mana tied itself around Raine's arm and threw her into the oasis just before the creature dove back into the sand.

"Sheena! Professor!"

"Lloyd! Stay focused!" Kratos chided to Lloyd who protectively hovered close by Colette while Kyros dove into the oasis after Raine, "Genis...be ready with a wind attack. Colette, listen for the worm."

"Okay..." Colette agreed and stood still as if trying to feel the creature's movements in the ground. Her bare foot shifted as she seemed to find the creature, "I feel it! It's going for the Professor!"

"Got it!" Lloyd ran for the oasis just as Kyros got Raine back to shore, "It's coming for you guys!"

"It's already here!" Raine stabbed her staff into the ground, creating a force field that forced open the emerging Wyrm's mouth as the creature tried to swallow her and Kyros, "Take it down now!"

"Alright!" Lloyd felt his exesphere's power awaken as he leapt at the exposed grey worm, "DOUBLE GUARDIAN THRUST!" Forming barriers around his blades, Lloyd stabbed his blades into the creature's flesh and caused it to recoil in unseen pain.

"We have to save Sheena and the Professor! ANGEL FEATHERS!" Colette's wings unfurled from her back and fired mana feathers that cut through the worm's flesh pincers.

"I feel loved today! IMPEL!" Raine and Kyros leapt from out of the creature's maw as the latter stabbed his sword into it's hide and slapped it with his other hand to cause a concussive burst that knocked the creature on it's side.

"Now's my chance! Wind Blade!" At Genis' command, the retracting pink mouth was slashed and cut by unseen blades of magical wind.

"Don't let up! BLAZING TEMPEST!" Enshrouded in fire, Lloyd somersaulted towards the worm and slashed the creature multiple times with his flaming swords before landing on the other side. But the wyrm suddenly regenerated it's mouth and a hard crust formed over it's skin as a thread of mana caught Lloyd by his arm and tossed him into the air.

"Lloyd!" Colette cried out as Lloyd was caught and swallowed in the wyrm's mouth, "GIVE ME BACK LLOYD YOU MEAN WORM! ANGEL WING!"

"Thunder Demon Fang!" Kratos slashed out at the creature's hide and created a crack for Colette's Feather Chakram to penetrate the vulnerable flesh underneath and charged in to focus upon a vulnerability, "Lightning Blade!"

"Kratos! Take my Photon!" Raine cried as an aura of light appeared around Kratos' lightning charged sword just before he struck the wyrm and a surge of lightning ran through the creature followed by the appearance of a shining glyph that glowed and exploded to knock off more crust from the wyrm's hide.

"It's weak to electric magic and fire magic makes it stronger..." Genis commented as the battle raged on and the young mage pondered his next move, "I've got it! Raine! I need your help! Come here!"

"Alright! Cover me!"

"Sure! That won't be hard." Kyros covered Raine's retreat as the wyrm knocked away Kratos and leapt up and down towards the mage, "Stop right there! Repel!" Visible mana flared out above Kyros and formed a triangular barrier that initially held up the worm. But the full weight of the creature caused the barrier to crack as Kyros focused to lower the barrier down to the sand and enlarged it to keep the wyrm from returning to the sand, "Don't how long I can hold it here!"

"We can manage with what we have!" Kratos leapt onto the wyrm and began to quickly hack away at it's hard shell to expose it to the coming spell that Genis and Raine were preparing together, "Colette! I could use some help!"

"Keep it right there!" Colette ran up to the beast and placed both hands and her cheek upon a part of it's exposed exterior to listen for something, "It's Lloyd and Sheena! They're still alive!"

"This won't hurt them will it?"

"They'll have a better chance with this than within that wyrm." Raine assured Genis just as they beginning to finish their combination spell and aimed it at the wyrm, "Whatever Lloyd is about to do, he had better do it fast!"

"I'm not waiting! Angelic Whirlwind!" Colette spun herself with her rings in each hand to cut into the creature's hide with angel-enhanced power and causing the creature to greatly writhe and throw Kratos from on top of it, "Can you hear me? Lloyd? Sheena!"

"Thanks Colette! Power Seal!" A burst of mana flared from within the wyrm and out of a gaping hole emerged Sheena in partially digested garb carrying a tired Lloyd on one shoulder, "That was a new sight that can be unseen."

"THUNDER BLADE!"

"Yeah...I guess..." Lloyd weakly laughed as Colette grabbed him and flew him and Sheena away from the wyrm just as a large mana sword of lightning fell from the sky and impaled itself upon the wyrm to create a fierce electric shock that temporarily blinded all sight of the area.

"Did we get it?" Genis asked when the shock faded away and revealed that the wyrm was nowhere to be seen, "It's gone?"

"Not quite...look." Thanks to his sister's further insight, Genis now saw a piece of burnt flesh that was partially submerged in the muddy floor, "It decided to retreat, but left behind it's compromised parts to allow it to escape. Much like a normal worm would."

"It's going to come back now!"

"I doubt it...these wyrms are typically bottom-feeders. When they're not absorbing wayward mana or carbon dioxide, they'll only go after prey that they think is easy to catch." Kyros assured the group, "Now that our mages have shoved a lightning sword through it's hide, it'll think twice about going after us."

"Curious," Kratos pondered out loud, "Evidently it had been lying beneath the oasis for sometime...why did it choose to reveal itself now?"

"It may have been absorbing Efreet's mana up until now," Raine conjectured, "And when we came here, it sensed us and decided to attack."

"Then why did it eat me first?"

"I guess...they are true!" Kyros laughed, "My father always said that they prefer to eat pretty women when they have a choice...I never thought that was true until now."

"His mistake." Sheena spat remembering her recent encounter with the wyrm's digestive system, "So how did these guys survive all this time?"

"A Wyrm must have laid an egg at the bottom of the desert and it survived long enough to hatch." Kyros guessed, "Through the cycles, the worms still had enough offspring to keep the species alive."

"And this one was fairly mature for it's age." Raine added, "I'm surprised considering Sylvarant's mana depletion."

"Maybe all of the worms are near the ruins? You know so that they could soak in Efreet's mana?" Lloyd's guess added a sense of tension to the group when they all figured just how right Lloyd may have been, "Can they swim?"

"You just saw them you idiot!" Sheena shouted and took another look at the lake, "Are you sure that we don't want to just kick in the front door, swords swinging and spells flying?"

"We should save that for our exit plan." Kratos suggested, "We do have one, correct?"

"Swords swinging and spells flying?"

"Why did I expect anything else?"

"I can't believe you people!" Raine moaned after another look at the now serene lake that would be the entryway back into the ruins, "After all of that, you still want to go into the water?"

"We're going into the water to get into the ruins. But you're free to stay here and take your chances with the wyrms." Lloyd offered to the aghast Raine, "You're choice."

"I hate you all..."

"What did I do!"

"Not you Genis...I just...fine!" Raine shouted with a growl, "But if I drown, I know exactly who I'm going to haunt!"

"Lloyd?"

"ALL OF YOU!"

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

**I have my own phobias, but I'm pretty sure that an encounter with a giant carnivorous worm would be more than enough motivation for me to put it aside.**

**Anyone else? Just me?**

**I had plenty of fun writing this chapter and the next one should be just as much fun. Because in the next chapter, the party will finally have to deal with the burden of NUMERICAL DISADVANTAGE!**

**Other than that, thanks for reading and reviewing. Stay tuned for the next chapter.**

**Later.**


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